England wicketkeeper-batsman talks IPL, David Willey and T20 Tri-Series in his first column for Sky Sports Cricket...
Wednesday 7 February 2018 08:23, UK
Jos Buttler blogs on his best batting display for England, what he has learnt from the IPL, and David Willey's pyrotechnics in his first column for Sky Sports...
I am looking forward to the T20 Tri-Series and I'm happy to bat anywhere, to be perfectly honest.
I've spent a lot of time in the middle order so I am really comfortable there and enjoy it a lot but last year in the IPL with Mumbai and recently in the Big Bash with Sydney I have opened and that has been fun, too.
I am at the stage of my career where it is nice to try new things and see how that goes, so batting up top is hopefully making me a more rounded player.
In the middle order the game is a little more laid out for you, whether you are batting first or chasing down a score, so you are a bit more reactive to the situation in front of you. Opening up, it is pretty much a blank canvas and dependent on how you play.
I came up against some of the Australia new boys in the Big Bash - I played against Adelaide twice, for example, so faced big Billy Stanlake.
You have so much video analysis these days but I always find that playing against guys for the first time allows you to pick up their action and variations, so it's nice to have a bit of familiarity going into the T20 series.
I think it's great that is a tri-series. It gives real context to the games and the carrot of a final at the end. I expect Australia to be really strong. They started well the other day against New Zealand and have some fantastic T20 players.
That said, as we always do, we will be focusing on ourselves, on our strengths, and making sure we are prepared.
I am very happy with my form - I felt like I had a decent finish in the Big Bash and then probably batted as well as I ever have in an England shirt when I scored that hundred in the ODI in Sydney.
Coming to Australia is always tough so to score a century in what proved to a series-winning game against a really strong attack was really pleasing, as was the way I paced my innings after we lost a wicket. The fact that knock was only a few games ago gives me a lot of confidence.
I shared an important stand with Chris Woakes at the SCG and he is really fun to bat with - he is such a fantastic player. He sometimes slips under the radar and doesn't seek the limelight that much but he is rated so highly within our team.
He is brilliant with the ball and with the bat - he played so well in pretty much every ODI and to have someone as capable as him coming in at No 8 shows the great depth we have in the line-up.
We'll both be playing in the IPL this spring - Woakesy is with Royal Challengers Bangalore and I'm with Rajasthan Royals.
I had a fantastic couple of years with Mumbai but I am now excited about the challenge with Rajasthan. It will be great to play alongside Ben Stokes, while any time you get to play in the IPL it is a fantastic experience.
Steve Smith will captain the Royals and it will be really interesting to play in the same side as him and see him up close. I learn by watching people up close, I did that a lot with Mumbai, and seeing how guys train and prepare is fascinating to me.
That work away from the cameras is where you get an insight into players' mindsets and how they approach the game. I'll definitely be looking to pick Steve's brains a bit.
Playing in the IPL has helped me stay calm in pressure situations and deal with the expectation, the big crowds and the razzmatazz - it's all about maintaining your thought process and performance amid the chaos and external factors.
You can then call on that experience going into different environments and different games.
David Willey was the star of our warm-up game against a Prime Minister's XI, hitting fives sixes and then a four in one Nathan Lyon over. It was extraordinary hitting, like watching Chris Gayle bat.
He played some unbelievable shots and when he hit two sixes I knew, with the character that he is, that he was going to keep going. I thought he was nailed on for six sixes when he smashed his fifth, so I have never been so disappointed to see someone hit a four!
We have seen David being so destructive for Yorkshire and Northants, scoring T20 hundreds, so I am sure he was desperate to get up the order. He took his chance and has given the coach and captain another option.
Once again, it shows the depth of talent we have in the squad.
