England white-ball captain Jos Buttler has been ruled out of the upcoming T20I series against Australia due to a right calf injury, raising doubts about his availability for the Metro Bank ODI series later this month.
In Jos’s absence, Lancashire’s Phil Salt, who captained the Manchester Originals in The Hundred, has been appointed as the new T20 captain. Surrey all-rounder Jamie Overton has been called into the T20 squad to fill the gap.
The three-match T20 series will commence on 11 September at Southampton’s Utilita Bowl. Additionally, Essex batter Jordan Cox has been added to the ODI squad as cover for the five-match series, which starts on 19 September at Trent Bridge.
Jos, initially sustained his calf injury in July while preparing for the men’s Hundred, forcing him to miss the tournament.
He had aimed to return during Lancashire’s Vitality Blast quarter-final against Sussex, but after aggravating the injury, he is now set to miss the remainder of the summer.
Jos hasn’t played since England’s T20 World Cup semi-final loss to India on June 27.
England remain hopeful that Buttler can participate in the ODI series, but his latest setback comes at a crucial time as the team transitions to a younger core following disappointing performances in the 2023 ODI and 2024 T20 World Cups.
