Jos Buttler Quotes

If you are batting first as an opener, you give yourselves a couple of overs, see what's the wicket behaving, and then try to assess what a good score on that wicket would be, and then you plan accordingly.

Shot selection is very important because you don't want to lose wickets at the start and put pressure on the rest of the side.

As an opening batsman, it's my responsibility to spend as much time in the middle as I can and try and get big scores in the first innings so that we don't have to bat in the second innings.

Obviously, when I go in at No. 11 it stands to reason that we will have a better chance of scoring runs or batting out time if the batsman at the other end takes most of the strike. That's because, as my place in the order suggests, he is a better batsman than me.

Personally, I am not thinking about batting only at No. 4. I want to be someone who is very flexible batting at any number or if you go into any situation you should be able to grab that opportunity and make the best use of it.

Before the match starts I visualise that I will try to rotate the strike and take singles. But if I see that the players batting before me are struggling, and the wicket is not playing that good, I try to dominate from the first ball.

If you are playing on a turning wicket, toss plays an important role. The team that wins the toss gets an opportunity to play on the fresh wicket. You should always prepare the wicket as per team's strength. But a rank turner might backfire.

The era of playing aggressive cricket and to have the mid-on up is gone. You now try to read the mindset of a batsman.

First six overs are important because if you put runs on board, it will take the pressure off the other batsmen.

I have always liked to attack the bowlers, and batting is all about getting runs.

I want to be a high-order batter in the one-day stuff, to play some long innings rather than just go in and have a swipe.

When you start off a T20 innings you want someone who is going to be hitting the top of off stump, causing problems and being quite disciplined with the ball.

When you open the batting, you have to read the pitch first up and try to understand the situation. But at No. 3, you know what is happening out there. It makes things a little simple when it comes to reading the game.

I'd say that, to be a good deal maker, you have to have 3 basic characteristics - timing, timing, and timing.

I'm just going to play whatever game is in front of me.

You have to see if the batsman is coming out, if he is staying back, what his grip is like, to gauge his intentions. A common trend I have observed is, a lot of batsmen change their grips when they are looking to hit: normally they either go high or slide their hand to the bottom of the handle to get maximum power.

According to the situation, your role changes in one-day cricket, especially in a phase like the Powerplay. If I bowl four spells, four times I will be playing a different role. If I come in the first Powerplay, and say the opposition are 70 for no loss after 10 overs, I will be looking to take a wicket.

I just feel that no matter what comes in a career - and mine has been all over the map - you must stay at the table, pick up the cards you're dealt and play them.

The batsman does not always need to create big hits. He can hit a boundary, then pick up some singles and still gets nine runs. To avoid that, I need to plan in a way where he must look to hit wherever there is a fielder. That is what is called 'bowling to the field.'

When I was growing up, I played a lot of ten- and 12-over games, and I would bat in the middle order. I got only ten-odd balls to face, and I tried to score as much as I could. I applied the same approach in domestic and international cricket, and people were appreciating my strike rate being more than 80 or 90 in Test cricket.

If you ask me, a batsman has very few opportunities as compared to a bowler. A bowler knows, if he gets hit for a six or a boundary, he has another delivery left to get back and take a wicket. For a batsman, one loose shot, and you are out. A bowler will always have 24 opportunities.

My shot selection has to be good to score big runs.

When you get into Indian top-order, you can wreak havoc. It's paramount to rattle the Indian top-order, otherwise, they can hurt you.

I don't need to be going out reverse-sweeping for six and four straightaway. Singles can be just as important as boundaries, rotating the strike and not letting the bowlers settle.

Whenever I get opportunities at the top of the order, that's the position I enjoy.