Jos Buttler to follow Eoin Morgan's example if he leads England against Afghanistan in World Cup
Sunday 16 June 2019 10:20, UK
Jos Buttler will utilise what he has learned from playing under Eoin Morgan if he is required to take over for England's next World Cup game against Afghanistan.
Vice-captain Buttler is standing by for Tuesday's game at Old Trafford in case Morgan fails to recover from the back spasm he sustained during England's eight-wicket victory against West Indies.
Both Morgan and opener Jason Roy - who picked up a hamstring injury during the same game on Friday - have been for scans, but the results have not yet been released.
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Buttler, who has already led England on six previous occasions, said: "I would be chuffed but I'd rather Eoin plays.
"I have played under Eoin for a long time - he's a fantastic captain and someone I have tried to learn from as vice-captain.
"We speak a lot about the game and we've got similar views so it will be very similar if it was me.
"It just looked like Eoin's back seized up, he couldn't move well. He'll have a scan and Jason, too - we'll see how their injuries are and hope for the best."
Should England decide not to risk Morgan. Buttler is confident he can handle the triple responsibility of captaining, keeping wicket and filling a key role as one of the team's most destructive middle-order batsmen.
"If it comes to captaining, then it's a huge honour any time you do it and from behind the stumps you have a really good view of what is going on," he added.
"It's down to you to manage and separate the two jobs. For the 10 seconds when you are a wicketkeeper, do that to the best of your ability, then outside of that allow yourself to think about the game."
With Roy also doubtful for the Afghanistan game, James Vince could be in line to make his first appearance of the tournament, while all-rounder Moeen Ali may also be recalled to the line-up.
Seamers Chris Woakes and Mark Wood have also been nursing knee and ankle problems respectively, which could prompt the selectors to bring Tom Curran into the side at Old Trafford.
"We spoke about how hard the squad was to pick and now getting in the XI is really competitive, so those guys on the sidelines are fantastic and ready to play," said Buttler.
"It's a long tournament, lots of games, and it will be a full squad effort. There are other guys who are not even in the 15 who may still come in and play a vital role."
Watch England take on Afghanistan live on Sky Sports Cricket World Cup from 10am on Tuesday.
