Buttler ruled out of England Pakistan white-ball tour — SkimNews
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- Jos Buttler injured his hamstring during the second ODI against Sri Lanka at Headingley, initially retiring hurt before returning to bat, and has been ruled out of England's upcoming white-ball tour of Pakistan.
- Tom Banton opened the batting in Buttler's absence during Sunday's series decider at The Oval, smashing 126 off 105 balls as England beat Sri Lanka by 223 runs to clinch the ODI series.
- Jordan Cox is expected to keep wicket on the Pakistan tour after returning to England's ODI side for the first time in nearly two years and impressing with a fluent 76 in the death overs.
- Limited-overs coach Brendon McCullum confirmed there is no guarantee the 36-year-old Buttler will be fit for England's tour of Australia in November, with the 50-over World Cup in southern Africa just 14 months away.
- England are set to finalise their Pakistan squad within 24 hours, with Sam Curran pushing for a return from a groin injury, further checks pending on Adil Rashid's bowling hand, and Jacob Bethell still recovering from a knee injury.
- McCullum enters the winter programme in charge of a white-ball side that has won 11 of its last 13 matches, having been removed from his Test coaching role following Ben Stokes' retirement and a series defeat by New Zealand.
Why it matters: England lose their most accomplished white-ball player with a World Cup just 14 months away, forcing McCullum to fast-track untested options like Cox and Banton while managing multiple injury concerns before the Pakistan tour squad is locked in within 24 hours.
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