England wicket-keeper batter Jos Buttler scripted history on Friday when he played one of the most destructive innings in the history of One-day Internationals (ODIs) against the Netherlands. Buttler lit up the VRA Cricket Ground in Amstelveen by smashing 14 gigantic sixes and seven boundaries en route to his unbeaten 162 off 70 deliveries to guide England to 498/4 in 50 overs – the highest total in ODIs.
After the explosive knock, Buttler credited the Indian Premier League (IPL) for his scintillating batting display. The English superstar explained how the 2022 edition of the cash-rich league helped him play the demolishing knock against the Netherlands.
Notably, Buttler had won the Orange Cap in the fifteenth season of IPL after he finished as the highest run-getter, scoring 863 runs for Rajasthan Royals (RR). The 31-year-old scored at a strike rate of 149, smashing four centuries and as many fifties for the 2008 IPL winners. Buttler carried that sublime form into the ongoing three-match series against the Netherlands and played a hurricane knock in the opening game to guide England to a massive 232-run victory.
“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 match.
Buttler threw light on the attacking mindset of the England team when asked about the prospect of reaching the 500-run milestone as a team in the future.
“We keep trying to push the boundaries, keep trying to take the game forward and take the game on. Everyone who played today, we really stuck to that. We’ll have to keep trying: it’s a tough thing to try and achieve, you have to play on a belting wicket and a small ground, but the biggest thing, irrelevant of the score, is the mentality that we’re showing as a team and we keep trying to better that and be aggressive and brave when we play,” added Buttler.
