Two Somerset batsmen with long-term England aspirations are in the cricketing news at the moment. Nick Compton – whose game is all about crease-occupation, innings-building and patience – scored a big century in the four-day game this week, answering several questions about his technique and temperament ahead of the Ashes.
The real headline-grabber, however, was Jos Buttler, whose style is – to put it mildly – very different to that of his Somerset team-mate.
In fact, while their cricketing ambitions may be similar, it is difficult to think of two England batsmen as diverse as Compton and Buttler.
Buttler's game is all about excitement – essentially it is a form of controlled risk-taking. His innovative, exuberant shot-making thrills crowds – the risks are high, but the rewards can be higher, as England and New Zealand found out this week.
The one-day series may have been lost by the time Buttler came to the middle in Wednesday's third and final ODI at Trent Bridge – but the match was certainly not. England's situation looked fairly perilous at 210 for five with one ball left in the 46th over – only for Buttler to produce the following sequence of scores from the 16 balls he faced: 1, 1, 6, 4, 4, 4, 0, 4, 4, 4, 0, 1 (bye), 1, 6, 6, 2.
In 16 deliveries, he scored an unbeaten 47, to help England turn 210 for five after 45.5 overs into 287 for six after 50. New Zealand were then dismissed for 253 – Buttler winning the man-of-the-match award for his game-changing knock.
When asked about a different Somerset player this week, the club's director of cricket, Dave Nosworthy, said: "Without being negative, I'm a believer that potential sometimes lets you down."
But few who regularly watch Buttler doubted he would make a big impact for England at some stage – it has always seemed a matter of when, not if, he transferred his explosive county performances to the international arena.
The unbeaten 32 he hit from ten balls when England beat South Africa in a Twenty20 international last September offered the first evidence he was capable of delivering at international level, while his first international half-century followed in New Zealand.
Then came Wednesday's pyrotechnics – not just a valuable contribution, or proof that Buttler's talents suit the international stage, but a decisive, match-winning score.
It is easy to forget, too, that, before his innings on Wednesday, Buttler had faced only 56 balls in one-day internationals – often batting with the tail.
His international career is still in its infancy – but, while there has never been any doubt in his home county that the boy from Wedmore is the real deal, now the whole nation knows.
If he continues in the same vein during the ICC Champions Trophy, then the whole world will find out – and it will surely be a matter of time before suitors from teams in the Indian Premier League come calling.
But Buttler's 47 not out from 16 balls was not only impressive in a cricketing context – following scores of 14 and two in a disappointing series for England as a team. It was impressive because, away from the glare of the cameras, the 22-year-old could have been forgiven for being consumed by more serious issues than cricket. He played the whole series while his baby nephew, Edward, was in intensive care in Bristol, having recently undergone open heart surgery.
We occasionally expect our sportsmen and women to effectively act as automatons, able to shut off any outside influences and simply 'Get on with it'. But Buttler, like anyone, is bound to be affected by such concerning family matters – even if he would never seek to use them as an excuse for a disappointing score.
But Wednesday signalled an extremely happy ending to a very difficult seven days for the Buttlers. Not only did Jos return to form – making his most telling contribution yet in an England shirt – but he was watched on television by little Edward, who is making excellent progress. Edward was able to sit on the knee of his mother, Joanne – Jos's sister – as his uncle won a match for England.
For one Somerset family – members of which are regularly spotted in the crowd at Taunton, even when Jos is not playing – the last few days have seen a wonderful end to an incredibly difficult few weeks.
For them – and for English cricket – this may also be the start of something rather special. Jos Buttler has well and truly arrived on the international scene – and there would be very few surprises if he went on to become one of the most destructive and successful limited-overs batsmen this country has produced.
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