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England begin an ODI series with India in Nagpur on Thursday, the three matches serving as a starter before the main: this month’s Champions Trophy. The 50-over tournament is back after an eight-year absence, the period in between seeing a proliferation in franchise Twenty20 cricket as well as three men’s T20 World Cups.
“I’ve always enjoyed 50-over cricket,” said Buttler. “It’s always been one of my favourite formats. But it’s certainly been pushed a little bit towards the margins in recent years, with the way the scheduling is and the rise of T20 and franchise cricket.
“I still think if you talk to guys about winning a World Cup, they’d probably say a 50-over World Cup ahead of a T20 World Cup at the moment. Whether that continues to be the case moving forward, I don’t know. I always think of the ’99 World Cup being something I watched as a kid. Maybe [for] the 20-year-olds now it’s all about T20 World Cups.”
ODIs have appeared to be low in the list of priorities for English men’s cricket since their 2019 World Cup victory at home. The one-day domestic competition has been relegated in status, operating in the shadows of the Hundred during the summer. Internationally, it can be seen through the use of Joe Root: England’s No 3 has been regularly rested in the format, playing just 28 of his side’s 62 ODIs since that super-over win against New Zealand.
With a major tournament to prepare for, Root is back in the 50-over mix for the first time in 15 months as England look to settle on a full-strength XI. “If you can pit your best teams against each other and you put your best players out there, I think that’s the way to keep 50-over cricket relevant,” Buttler added.
Root is …
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