- England suffered a dismal World Cup defeat to South Africa in Mumbai
- Captain Jos Buttler reflected after the match that he should not have chosen to bowl first
- England next play Sri Lanka, with retention of the World Cup becoming increasingly unlikely
Jos Buttler admitted he was wrong at the toss after South Africa’s powerful batting unit smashed 399 for seven on a cathartic afternoon in Mumbai.
It was the second World Cup match in a row in which England have misinterpreted the conditions after opting to chase Afghanistan in Delhi, where they lost a week ago.
This time, Buttler’s decision to bowl left his team playing in 36-degree heat and energy-sapping humidity, leaving the captain to reflect on a defeat that appears to have done irreparable damage to their title defense.
“After games you always think and question your decisions,” he said. “Certainly, in retrospect and given the physicality of that innings, batting first would have been a better decision. But it was a decision I made at the time, and I still believe that if we had chased the 340 or 350, we would have done well under those conditions.
‘It’s a tough defeat to take. We were disappointed in Delhi, but we had a good few days and worked very hard to put things right. It leaves us in an awkward position. From now on there is no more room for mistakes. We sit down and move on – and that’s all you can do in this situation.”
Jos Buttler admitted he made the wrong decision at the toss as England were thrashed by South Africa
England were faced with the unenviable task of chasing the Proteas 399 in sweltering conditions in Mumbai
But Buttler insisted his side would dust themselves off and perform again ahead of Thursday’s crucial match against Sri Lanka
Asked how he would go about transforming England’s fortunes in a tournament that is in danger of getting away from them, Buttler said: ‘In complete honesty. It’s clear we’re not performing at our best.’
“My job as captain, along with the rest of the team, is to work out how we can get back to playing that brand of cricket and fulfill our potential. It won’t be that everyone gives up. We dust ourselves off, puff out our chests and go again. You can’t fault anyone’s efforts and there is still confidence in the dressing room.”
Buttler praised Heinrich Klaasen for his brutal 61-ball hundred, an innings that Klaasen described as ‘up there with my best ever’. England were equally unhappy that Klaasen had celebrated by shouting in front of Mark Wood, with Buttler saying he ‘didn’t have to celebrate in Mark Wood’s face’. But he added: “He immediately apologized, so there are no ill feelings.”
England’s next match is against Sri Lanka in Bangalore on Thursday, when defeat would almost certainly mean elimination with four group games remaining.