ICC World Cup 2023: Defending champions England are going against New Zealand in the ICC World Cup 2023 opener at Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad. England skipper Jos Buttler is not taking the title of defending champions much seriously and asserted that England is “in exactly the same position as every other team.” In a press conference ahead of the inaugural match against New Zealand, Jos Buttler faced a bizarre question, but his calm response is winning hearts on the internet.
During the press conference, a journalist asked Jos Buttler about how the bowling of England will be impacted by the absence of bowlers like James Anderson and Stuart Broad. Now, the only problem with the question is James Anderson played his last ODI match in 2015 and only plays in red-ball cricket for England. Similarly, Stuart Broad also played his last ODI game in 2016 and recently announced his retirement from all formats of the game.
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Despite the question being very ill-researched, Jos Buttler replied to the journalist very calmly and claimed that England has a nicely balanced team of fast bowlers and spinners.
“I think Jimmy is still available for selection. He has not played since 2015 and I don’t think Stuart has either even though he has retired. Those two guys unfortunately won’t be a part of this tournament. But yes we do have a really good side of fast bowlers, spinners – a nicely balanced team,” the England skipper said.
Empty stands for the Eng vs NZ opener
One unexpected thing that occurred during the England vs New Zealand ICC World Cup 2023 opening match on Thursday was the lackluster response at the Narendra Modi Stadium. Most of the seats remained empty in the world’s largest cricket stadium sparking a social media outrage which pointed at poor organisation.
In the first innings, New Zealand bowlers seem to be ahead of England’s batters as the top order of England has been crushed and after 28 overs, England is at 155/4
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