Former England cricketer Mark Butcher had declared Jos Buttler and his brigade as the losers even before the start of the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025. Butcher has dropped the bombshell after England’s embarrassing defeats in the T20I and ODI series in India.
Mark Butcher has bluntly said that the current England National Cricket Team can’t be taken seriously as the strong contender to win the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025, starting on February 19 with the Three Lions facing Australia on February 22 in their tournament opener.
Mark Butcher drops bombshell on England’s ICC Champions Trophy 2025 chances
Notably, since their disastrous 2023 ODI World Cup campaign, where they failed to defend their crown, England’s struggles have been only deepening in white-ball cricket. Brendon McCullum’s tenure as white-ball head coach has started on a shaky note, losing a 0-3 ODI series to India.
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The Jos Buttler-led English side has won just four out of their last 14 ODIs, and now they are facing the daunting challenge of finding form in the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025. Meanwhile, Mark Butcher highlighted England’s lack of experience in 50-over cricket, which he believes is affecting their performance, and that’s probably the reason behind their downfall.
Mark Butcher calls for more ODI cricket for England
The cricket expert has also pointed out that England rarely plays ODIs, which makes it difficult for players to develop the right game awareness and adaptability needed in the 50-over format of the game. He said that ODI cricket demands a fluctuating tempo, where players must know when to attack and when to slow down.
Mark Butcher further went on to compare England’s current situation to the 1990s, when they played very few ODIs, leaving them and even a senior player like Jos Buttler with less experience compared to Indian players.
Speaking on the Wisden Cricket Weekly podcast, Mark Butcher said, “I don’t mean that the tempo is a rigid graph that only goes up; the tempo needs to fluctuate in 50-over cricket in a way that it doesn’t need to in 20-over cricket.
“I remember back in the 90s when England would play three Texaco Trophy matches during the course of the summer and now we’re kind of back in that situation now whereby the India players will out number the number of caps of even someone like Jos Buttler, for example, by at least two to one or three to one.”
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Butcher says England can’t win Champions Trophy 2025
He expressed doubt about England’s chances in the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025 due to their lack of experience and adaptability in 50-over cricket. Butcher signed off by saying, “If you’re talking about winning a Champions Trophy in a couple of weeks time, it’s not likely, is it?
That our team and the makeup of it and the experience of it are going to have the skill and the nous and the know-how to win what is a very difficult form of cricket, 50-over cricket. It requires more than just putting your foot to the floor and keeping it there.”
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