The English white-ball setup has been on a downward spiral ever since they clinched the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup held in Australia in 2022.
They could not make it beyond the group stages of the ODI World Cup in 2023, before being handed a semi-final crushing by India in the T20 edition of the tournament. That was followed by another poor outing in the Champions Trophy, where they faced defeats against Australia and Afghanistan.
They are yet to face South Africa, but England’s campaign has already rounded off.
“I’m going to stand down as England captain. It’s the right decision for me and the team,” Buttler said.
“Somebody will come and work along side Baz (McCullum) and take the the team better where it needs to be.
“This tournament was important for my captaincy, but results did not go our way. I feel it’s the right time to step aside.”
England and South Africa are squaring off against each other at the National Bank Stadium in Karachi on Saturday. Even before this decision was taken, former England players like Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton had demanded for this decision to be taken.
Though they maintained that Buttler is a pioneer of England’s white-ball transformation, the duo said that the team needed a more charismatic presence at helm, believing that Buttler was not getting the troops together like his predecessor Eoin Morgan.
First Published: Feb 28, 2025 7:49 PM IST
