Afghanistan Vs England, Champions Trophy: Root Backs 'Brilliant Leader' Buttler To Change ENG Fortunes

Joe Root backed Jos Buttler as a "brilliant leader" and believes the England captain is doing a better job than he did during his tenure as Test skipper. (Full Coverage | More Cricket News)

𓂃Buttler led England to the T20 World Cup title in 2022 but they have since suffered back-to-back disappointments at international events.

ౠEngland won only three of their nine matches as defending champions at the 50-over World Cup in 2023, while their title defence at the T20 World Cup last year was ended at the semi-final stage by India, having also lost to Australia and South Africa earlier in the tournament.

🍸Buttler's team are also in a difficult position in the Champions Trophy after losing their opener to Australia.

ꦍIt means England likely needs to beat both Afghanistan and South Africa in order to make it out of Group B to qualify for the semi-finals and Root was full of praise for their leader ahead of the important run-in.

🤡"He's doing so much right on the field, making good decisions and creating a really good environment for us to thrive in," Root said.

💃"He's a brilliant leader. He's the best white-ball player we've ever produced, and he's got the full support of everyone within our dressing room to keep doing and keep bringing everything that he's brought so far to this team."

🦩Root captained England in 64 Tests between 2017 and 2022, the most of any player, and won a record 27 of those matches. However, a run of just one win in 17 saw him resign from his position.

༒"I certainly think that this team are doing more things right than maybe some of the teams I captained," Root added.

🐻England's defeat on Saturday saw Australia pull off a record chase, successfully chasing down their target after England had finished on 351-8 to secure a five-wicket win.

🐽It marked four defeats in a row in bilateral ODI series, but Root insisted there were positives to take from the loss to their old rivals.

🧔"What I would say is you can be frustrated by it, or you can be excited by it," Root said.

𒆙"The fact that we are doing a lot of things right is a good thing and that's what we have to really focus on."