| the places: Ageas Bowl and Edgbaston & Trent Bridge dates: 7, 9 and 10 July times: First T20 at 18:00 GMT, 2 and 3 T20s at 14:30 |
| coverage: Special match test commentary, text commentary and game highlights on the BBC Sport website and app. 1st and 3rd T20 highlights on BBC Two and iPlayer. The second edition of T20 will be broadcast live on BBC Two & iPlayer from 14:00 on July 9 |
The new white ball captain, Jose Butler, says England will remain “really aggressive and not afraid of failure” under him.
Former Vice Captain Butler, 31, Take over from Eoin Morgan Last week after the 50+ World Cup winning captain retired from international cricket.
His first streak in charge is twenty-three 20 internationals against India, starting with the Ageas Bowl on Thursday.
“There isn’t much at the moment that needs to change,” Butler told BBC Sport.
“I see the game exactly the same way as Eoin.”
Butler will work alongside newly appointed Australian coach Matthew Mott, as the pair look to build a squad capable of winning this year’s T20 World Cup in Australia and defend the Over-50 World Cup in India in October 2023.
England lost to New Zealand in last year’s T20 World Cup semi-final, which was won by Australia.
“I want us to play in exactly the same way – to be really positive, really aggressive and not be afraid of failure,” Butler added.
“There is a clear identity that will outlast Eoin, outlast me and outlast anyone who follows me as well.
“I never see it coming back, I see some people just trying to move forward with it.”
After the dismal 2015 World Cup, England adopted a tough approach under Morgan that led them to the 2019 title and breaking the international one-day total record three times, most recently in 498-6 hit against the Netherlands Last month.
The Test team has now taken that positivity under new captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCollum, leading to four straight wins by chasing over 275 totals, including England’s pursuit of a record 378 win over India Tuesday.
Butler, who was dropped from the test side after the poor Ashes series in Australia, said the Stokes team was “a hell of a lot of fun” to watch, but added that he was focusing on the limited aspects.
“They seem to have reminded themselves of what an honor and privilege it is and how much fun they can have in playing cricket, not worrying too much about the results,” he said.
“And in fact, the results came by doing this.
“If anything it is just a reminder to the white ball teams that this is exactly how we want to play cricket too.”
After India, England also play a series against South Africa, Pakistan and Australia to refine the starting line-up in the opening match of the T20 World Cup against Afghanistan on October 22.
None of the Test team will be involved against India, and the schedule also means that England will not always be able to field the first-choice team in preparation for the tournament.
“The expectations are high for us as a group and the T20 World Cup is not far off, so we want to build for that,” Butler said.
“With the schedule and some injuries there will be opportunities for the players to raise their hands, which is exciting because this develops the strength of the team.”
India Test players Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja will be available from the second T20 onwards, while captain Rohit Sharma may return after Covid-19 means he missed the Edgbaston Test.
Butler said he expects a “really tough challenge” from India as there is “a lot of strength in depth and talent” in their team.
He added, “They are used to playing a lot of T20 cricket, they know the format very well. I expect a great streak.”
a program
July
7 1st T20, Ageas Bowl (d/n) (18:00 BST)
9 2nd T20, Edgbaston (14:30)
10 3rd T20, Trent Bridge (14:30)
England T20 Series Lineup: Joss Butler (Captain Walk), Muen Ali, Harry Brooke, Sam Curran, Richard Gleeson, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingston, David Malan, Timal Mills, Matthew Parkinson, Jason Roy, Phil Salt, Rhys Tubley, David Wylie.
India squad for the first T20: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Ishaan Kishan, Roturaj Gaekwad, Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Dinesh Karthik (WK), Hardik Pandya, Venkatesh Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, Aksar Patilwar, Ravi Pecharsnoy Avesh Khanovishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Imran Malik.
