World T20 2016: We’re looking for our own Gayle force, says Jos Buttler

Jos Buttler knows all too well what it feels like to leave a party early and is desperate to avoid another premature exit at the World Twenty20.

Buttler was on duty in Bangladesh two years ago when England failed to reach the competition’s knockout phase and again when they were humiliated at the group stage of the 2015 World Cup.

He now faces the prospect of an unwanted hat-trick after England lost their opening fixture in India amid a torrent of sixes from West Indies’ Chris Gayle.

Realistically, England must beat South Africa on the same ground if they are to progress from the Super 10s and the possible consequences of that match are not lost on the vice-captain.

“Ten months ago at the World Cup was some of the worst feelings I’ve ever had on a cricket field,” said Buttler. “Whether you’ve played in world tournaments or not, we’ve all had bad experiences in cricket. You learn from them, you move on from them. You still come back, dust yourself down and go again.

“We’ll be really focused on that. It’s still a game of cricket, you have the same emotions and the same thought processes but the outcome could potentially be more defining on the tournament.

“But it’s still 20 overs, it’s still 22 yards, and we’ve got to focus on that and learn from what happened against the West Indies.”

If England are to take lessons from their defeat, they must do so quickly with just one rest day between matches. Their score of 182 for 6 looked competitive and Buttler, promoted to No 4, made 30 in 20 deliveries. Yet in retrospect it was not quite explosive enough on a batsman’s surface at the Wankhede Stadium. South Africa have a superstar like Gayle lying in wait, AB de Villiers, and Buttler admits: “That’s what you get when you turn up at world tournaments, all the best players in the world in one place. It’s great for fans to see these guys perform at one time and we’ve got to have guys who stand up and compete with them.

“We need to produce these players in our side as well if we’re going to go further and win these tournaments,” he said. “With the bat we were probably par at best last time. We were looking more for 200 and needed someone to go on and play that big innings, to get that really big score that would have helped kick us on towards the 200 mark.”

Captain Charlotte Edwards led the way with a half-century as England’s women began their World Twenty20 campaign with a comfortable 36-run win over Bangladesh.

Having opted to bat first she made 60 in 51 balls, her 11th 50 in the format, as her side posted 153 for 7 in Bangalore. Nat Sciver made 27 and Katherine Brunt and Dani Wyatt scored briskly at the end.

Bangladesh made their best T20 score in response but still finished well adrift on 117 for 6. Brunt began with a wicket maiden and pace bowler Anya Shrubsole took 2 for 27.

“It’s always nice to get some runs and more importantly a win,” said Edwards. “We still have some work to do on our bowling and fielding but it’s a good start.”

PA