Morgan encouraged by Buttler's brilliance ahead of World Cup

Southampton, May 12: Eoin Morgan lauded Jos Buttler for his "freakish" 55-ball knock that helped England to victory over Pakistan in the second one-day international.

England took a 1-0 series lead - the opener was rained off - as Buttler recorded his country's second-fastest ODI century in a 12-run win in Southampton.

Captain Morgan was at the other end for the entirety of Buttler's innings of 110 and, with the Cricket World Cup just weeks away, he was encouraged by his team-mate's impressive display.

"He's very good. He really is," Morgan said. "I was in prime position to see the whole innings and his freakish knocks seem to be getting closer and closer together.

"That's a great sign for us going forward. He seems to have a gear that not many of us have. I certainly don't have it.

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"He always seems to time his run well, however long he has in. It's always open for discussion whether he should bat up the order, but he was the difference today."

Explaining his knack for producing match-turning performances, Buttler added: "Cricket has developed a lot in the last few years and everyone's trying to expand their range at the end of the innings.

"It's a huge part of the game trying to extend that last 15 overs. You start by building a partnership and the guys set a brilliant platform.

"Because we bat deep, that allows us to try to push on a bit earlier in the innings. It's just about trying to get as many as you can as fast as you can."