England’s charismatic batsman Jos Buttler has credited the recently concluded season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) for his batting exploits in the first ODI against the Netherlands, saying he arrived for the series in “good touch” with a “licence to attack”.
Buttler smashed 14 sixes and seven boundaries as he scored an unbeaten 162 off 70 deliveries at a strike rate of 231.42 to guide his team to a record score of 498/4 in the allotted 50 overs.
Buttler, 31, had emerged the highest run-getter in IPL 2022, scoring 863 runs for Rajasthan Royals as they made it to the final against Gujarat Titans recently. The England cricketer scored at a strike rate of 149, smashing four centuries and an equal number of half-ton for the franchise.
He has carried that sublime form into the three-match series against the Netherlands, where he played a hurricane knock to guide the Eoin Morgan-led team to a massive 232-run victory on Friday.
“The IPL couldn’t have gone better for me, coming here in good touch, good wicket, licence to attack. The World T20 went well, the Ashes was tough, I had two months of no cricket, very refreshing, turned up to the IPL with lots of motivation, energy and drive to get the best out of yourself,” said Buttler after the win.
The cricketer felt that the victory had given new white-ball head coach Matthew Mott plenty to cheer about.
“Good start for him, isn’t it. We have a clear-cut style of play, he wants to sit back and watch the team play, we want to sharpen up in certain areas, and great to see Sam Curran back in an England shirt. Trying to work out the conditions, and back my six-hitting, stand stiller and hit sixes,” added Buttler.