England v Australia: Jos Buttler to open batting in Twenty20 at Edgbaston

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Naijafinix Daily News Update

Jos Buttler will open the batting for England in their sole Twenty20 against Australia at Edgbaston on Wednesday.

The wicketkeeper previously batted in the middle order, but his highest T20 score – an unbeaten 73 against Sri Lanka in 2016 – came as an opener.

He made five consecutive half-centuries when opening for Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League.

“The way he’s playing, it makes sense to get him at the top of the order,” assistant coach Paul Farbrace said.

“You want to get your best strikers facing as many balls as possible.”

Buttler scored 275 runs, including an unbeaten 110, in England’s 5-0 one-day whitewash of Australia.

He averages 25.45 from 61 T20 appearances for England, and has a strike rate of 134.29.

Farbrace will oversee the side at Edgbaston, and for the three T20s against India, in place of head coach Trevor Bayliss.

Bayliss will spend the period watching the England Lions, some County Championship cricket and the One-Day Cup final on 30 June, before returning for the 50-over series against India.

Australian Bayliss is set to step down after the 2019 Ashes in England but Farbrace said he did not see these four matches as an audition to replace him.

“My aim over these next 10 days is that the lads absolutely don’t feel that there’s anything any different,” the 50-year-old told BBC Sport.

“It’s a case of keeping the ship moving forward and making sure everyone is smiling and enjoying themselves.”

England are fifth in the International Cricket Council’s T20 rankings, three places behind Australia.

“In a T20 game you’re talking about keeping things very simple and making sure you can adapt to the situations,” Farbrace added.

“The key is the players know that whatever they try, that they’re being supported by everybody. That’s what we’ve tried to create and I think it’s something Morgs [captain Eoin Morgan] has done exceptionally well.”

 

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