England faced New Zealand in an important match of the 2026 T20 World Cup Super 8 Group 2. The Kiwis won the toss and decided to bat first and scored 159/8 in the allotted 20 overs. Chasing the target, the Three Lions lost their openers Phil Salt and Jos Buttler, who returned to the pavilion in the first two overs.
Jos Buttler returned without opening the account as the former England captain’s low-scoring streak continues. The dismissal against New Zealand marked his fifth consecutive single-figure score. Despite doing extra net sessions and facing local spinners, he has so far failed to shake out his poor form.
Jos Buttler’s low-scoring decline continues
In this edition against the fast pace, Jos Buttler faced a lot of difficulties with the bat and could only score 35 runs in 7 innings off 38 balls, with 5 dismissals. His average of 7.0 and strike rate of 92.10 highlights a rare slump for the usually explosive batsman, as he has struggled to make meaningful contributions or provide the impact expected of him in the lineup.
The dreadful tournament continues for Jos Buttler. pic.twitter.com/Cl85WEOjS7
– Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) 27 February 2026
Jos Buttler’s highest score is 26, which came against Nepal in the first group stage match of the tournament. He has not been able to go beyond the 30 run mark. He has scored 62 runs in seven innings at an average of 8.86. For three lions.
Jos Buttler’s very poor record in ICC events
Buttler has scored one half-century (83* vs USA) in 26 innings in his last four ICC tournaments. This is a matter of concern for Jos Buttler as he has failed to score runs. Jos Buttler averages 17.2 in four tournaments in ICC events since the 2023 ODI World Cup.
| tournament | Inn | it goes | average | strike rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| one day world cup 2023 | 9 | 138 | 15.33 | 97.18 |
| t20 world cup 2024 | 6 | 131 | 26.20 | 135.00 |
| champions trophy 2025 | 3 | 82 | 27.33 | 77.36 |
| t20 world cup 2026 | 7 | 62 | 8.86 | 106.90 |
Buttler previously had the highest batting average as an opener in T20 WC (min 5 batting) in 2021 at 89.66, and now his lowest batting average as an opener in T20 WC in 2026 (min 5 batting) is 8.86.
Lowest batting average as an opening batsman in T20 World Cup (minimum 5 batting times)
8.85 – Jos Buttler (2026)*
9.60 – Soumya Sarkar (2016)Highest batting average as an opening batsman in T20 World Cup (minimum 5 innings batted)
277 – Brian Bennett (2026)
89.66 – Jos Buttler (2021)#ENGvNZ pic.twitter.com/pDkDoZDumF– CricBeat (@Cric_Beat) 27 February 2026
England in trouble against New Zealand
Talking about the match, Joffra Archer made a great start and the fast bowler bowled the maiden ball. Then the two opening batsmen, Tim Seifert and Finn Allen, started aggressively, scoring runs at a good pace from both ends. Of the two, the latter was the more explosive.
Seifert returned to the pavilion after scoring 35 runs in 25 balls. Allen was out in the over of Will Jacques after scoring 29 runs in 19 balls. After the sudden fall of two wickets, Glenn Phillips and Rachin Ravindra controlled the middle overs. Rachin, who was the best player of the match, could not perform well with the bat and was out after scoring 11 runs.
Phillips played an innings of 39 runs in 28 balls, hitting four fours and a six. The Kiwi team could only give a target of 160 runs, due to which England came back into the game. England are in trouble at 58/4 and captain Harry Brook has just been out. The Kiwi spinner would like to take over the responsibility now that England’s most in-form batsman is gone.
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