‘It was a really tough call to make’ – Jos Buttler on Jason Roy being excluded from England’s ODI World Cup squad

Jos Buttler interacts with the press after the first India vs England ODI (Photo Source: Youtube/ Vimal Kumar)

Jason Roy has been excluded from the final England squad for the upcoming ODI World Cup 2023. Assuming the responsibility, Jos Buttler, the English white-ball captain, personally informed Jason Roy about his exclusion from the team. In the same vein, Buttler candidly shared his perspective on this challenging task of preferring Harry Brook over Roy in the aftermath of the injury sustained by the latter.

Buttler said that it was not an enjoyable thing but is part of a Captain’s strategy and tactics with England going into the ODI World Cup 2023. Additionally, the ODI skipper also did not miss out on emphasizing that Roy is a close friend. Hence, it got even tougher to arrive at the final decision regarding excluding Roy.

“I don’t think any time is easy. It’s part of the job as captain that is not enjoyable, whether they’re great friends or not, it’s not a nice job to do. I certainly feel like it’s my responsibility to give that news. He’s a great mate of mine so it was a really tough call to make,”  Buttler was quoted as saying by ESPN Cricinfo. 

This wasn’t the first time Roy had received such news from Buttler. Previously, Roy had also been omitted from England’s T20 World Cup squad. The recent omission was a result of Roy’s unfortunate back spasms that forced him to miss all four of England’s ODIs against New Zealand. His spot in the squad was claimed by Harry Brook.

Jason will be top-order reserve, Harry, we do feel gives us versatility: Buttler

England’s management has asked Roy if he would be willing to serve as the top-order reserve in case of injuries during the World Cup. However, he will not travel with the primary squad to India. Instead, Harry Brook, known for his class batting ability to bat at any position (covering Nos. 1 to 6), will fill that role. Commenting on the overall selection process, Jos Buttler acknowledged the harsh reality of the sports.

“Jason will be the top-order reserve, absolutely, Harry, we do feel gives us versatility: he can cover Nos. 1 to 6 in the batting order, which is advantageous in a squad,” the England ODI skipper continued.

“But good players miss out, it’s the very brutal nature of the sport. There are plenty of people outside the 15 who will have felt that they were in with a really good chance of a spot. It’s a bad headache to have but a good problem as a selection committee when you have a deep pool of players to choose from,” Buttler concluded.