India vs England: It's a huge challenge to face India in India, says Jos Buttler

Chennai, January 30: England wicketkeeper-batsman Jos Buttler on Saturday (January 30) said occupying crease is key to have a successful tour to India. Buttler said the English batsmen can take inspiration from skipper Joe Root, who made a double hundred and hundred in the Test series against Sri Lanka at Galle recently.

India will face England in the first Test at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai, from February 5.

"Obviously, there are some different faces with us this time around, some young guys who are at the start of their careers and for some, this is their first tour in Asia. Dom Sibley, Zack Crawley, and Rory Burns are some guys who can occupy the crease for a long time. Spending time in India helps you understand the magnitude of the game here, it is a huge challenge for us to play against India in India.

"It is about adapting to the conditions and playing accordingly, when the ball swings in England, a good first innings score can be 300. When you play in India, if we play on a fantastic wicket, the good score would be 600, understanding and realisation of scoring big runs is the key. Root was a fantastic example of us as he scored 200 and 180+ in Sri Lanka," Buttler said during a virtual press meet.

Buttler said the English batsmen can take a cue from Root. "Joe was in fantastic form in Sri Lanka, he has always had a brilliant game to play spin bowling. He is one of the best exponents of the sweep shot and he picks length brilliantly. It is a big strength when playing spin, he is very hard to bowl dot balls at. He scores quickly against spin and he has so many shots, he manages to rotate strike," he said.

Buttler also supported the rotation policy adopted by ECB for this tour. "ECB has been forward-thinking to rotate the players in and out of this series, at times there is frustration because you want to see the best players on show all the time, but it is just not possible looking at the time spent in the bubble. Looking at the short-term goals is important, there is no certainty if you look too far ahead," said Buttler, who would be returning to England after the first two Tests before coming back for the white ball series.

For the first two Tests, Jonny Bairstow would also not be available and he would only come into the squad for the last two Tests. Buttler said it is not possible for cricketers to play every match because staying in a bio-bubble can eventually take its toll.

"It is certainly a challenge, it is hard to say that the situation is quite difficult as there are some people in the world who are in a tough situation at the moment looking at the pandemic and lockdown, we are very fortunate to play cricket and do what we love, but having said that, it is quite challenging to spend time away from our families, having your family locked up in hotels can be quite difficult," said Buttler.