Jos Buttler (L) & Babar Azam and Virat Kohli (R) - Source: AFP Photos
Ex-England captain Jos Buttler is having a horrible T20 World Cup 2026, taking place in India and Sri Lanka. However, that did not force him to reach new heights in the shortest format of the game, going past the all-time greats, including Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Babar Azam.
Even though calling Babar Azam an all-time great might sound a bit wrong, he was impeccable during his glory days, going toe-to-toe with everybody.
After making 17-ball 26 against Nepal in England’s tournament opener, Buttler scored 21 off 14 balls against the West Indies. He could only make 3 off 4 balls in the following game, against Scotland, taking the tally to 50 runs across three innings, averaging 16.67.
Yet, in the process, Buttler became the quickest player to reach the 4000-run tally in T20Is in terms of balls faced.
Fastest to 4000 Runs in T20Is: Buttler goes past Rohit
| Jos Buttler (England)* | 2690 Balls |
| Rohit Sharma (India) | 2860 Balls |
| Virat Kohli (India) | 2900 Balls |
| Babar Azam (Pakistan) | 3079 Balls |
However, it is worth noting that Buttler was not the quickest to reach 4000 T20I runs, in terms of the number of innings. Virat Kohli got there in 107 innings, followed by Babar Azam (112 innings), Buttler himself (138 innings) and Rohit Sharma (144 innings).
One of the all-time greats in white-ball cricket, Jos Buttler had 3997 runs in 137 T20I innings before coming to the Scotland fixture. His strike rate of 148.69, at an average of 35.06, indicated exactly why he had been rated highly. Unsurprisingly, his woes in the T20 World Cup have been hampering England, who are desperate not to make any slip-ups.
Not to forget, Buttler has an excellent record in ODIs as well, with 5515 runs across 171 innings, speaking volumes. His strike rate of 115.20 in 50-over cricket is equally impressive, with 29 half-centuries and 11 centuries under his belt.
In T20Is, Buttler has notched up 28 fifties and one hundred, with the highest score reading an unbeaten 101.
Along with Buttler, Phil Salt is having a horrendous T20 World Cup, having aggregated only 33 runs in three matches. Courtesy of their failures, they are having a shaky start in the ongoing T20 World Cup edition. At the time of writing this, they are 43/2 after six overs, chasing 153.
Needless to say, this is a must-win game for England, having lost to the West Indies before coming to this fixture. If things go south for the Harry Brook-led side, it would be tough for them to qualify for the Super 8 stage.
Group C T20 World Cup scenario: England in tatters
West Indies are currently at the top of Group C, with Scotland and Italy being placed in second and third places, respectively. England are fourth, while Nepal languish bottom of the points table.
England will next play against Italy on Monday, February 16. That would be their last match of the group stage. Scotland, on the other hand, will go up against Nepal a day after.
