Jos Buttler, the workhorse batsman for England, has discussed the guidance he received from former India captain Virat Kohli during his IPL 2023 run-scoring slump. The 34-year-old claimed that following a stellar 2022 season in which he amassed 863 runs in 17 games, he went to Kohli for guidance on how to control expectations.
Buttler claimed that Kohli advised him not to place too much pressure on himself to repeat the 2022 season as his best-ever IPL campaign in 2023.
Buttler stated in an interview with former England pacer Stuart Broad for the podcast For The Love Of Cricket:
“I had that one season in 2022 where I scored 860 runs. But he’s (Kohli) got the record for the most number of runs in a season (973 runs in 2016), which is phenomenal. I actually found the next season quite difficult because I was like, how do I live up to that? We were training at the same time as RCB. I have played against Virat a lot, huge competitor on the field and sort of feel like, he has aggro with everyone.”
Jos Buttler
“I just thought I am going to ask him a couple of questions. He had just finished batting. I thought why not go over and ask him. The question, sort of, was about how do you manage expectations? There is more expectation on him than anyone in world cricket. one-and-a-half billion people, all wanting to see you score runs. “
Jos Buttler
“He was so generous with his time, so helpful about maybe that was just that one season where it is the best season you ever had and you just have to say and accept that. Don’t try to replicate it and don’t try and feel the pressure that is all on your own that you are putting it on. It is okay, life is going to be fine, it is going to work out. I remember coming away from it being so thankful for his time and grateful for his insights and amazed by the knowledge that he had of my own game and sort of what might work.”
Jos Buttler
Reflecting on his meeting and speaking with Kohli, Buttler stated that the IPL allows players to meet the world’s finest cricketers.
“I think that is one of the brilliant things about the IPL, getting to rub shoulders, it is like the best cricket academy in the world.”
Jos Buttler
Jos Buttler Recalls Special IPL 2025 Moment at Narendra Modi Stadium
Buttler joined the Gujarat Titans prior to the IPL 2025 season after spending several seasons with the Rajasthan Royals. The 34-year-old stated that he relished the opportunity to play for the team captained by Shubman Gill. He also recalled an instance at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad when he was playing his team against SunRisers Hyderabad and was taken aback by the strength of the audience.
“Huge stadium in Ahmedabad. I had quite a cool moment, it was against Sunrisers Hyderabad, just a midweek game, not massively important in the grand scheme of the tournament at that stage. We batted first, we batted well and I was walking in between the overs and probably just after the powerplay, the stands go really far back and I am sort of looking around and I thought, my god this place is full.””90,000 people watching Gujarat Titans versus Sunrisers Hyderabad on a Thursday night or something for a mid-tournament league game.”
Jos Buttler
“Really enjoyed it. It was great actually for me. I had been with Rajasthan Royals for a long time. So going to somewhere new, you are bit unsure of what it is going to be like. But a few familiar faces. Vikram Solanki is the director of cricket there. Someone I have known a bit from over here in England, helped me settle in really well. I think I have played 10 seasons of IPL now, there is a lot of movement around the squad so there is quite a few familiar faces, guys I have played with before at Royals or Mumbai Indians where I had my first two seasons.”
Jos Buttler
“Huge stadium in Ahmedabad. I had quite a cool moment, it was against Sunrisers Hyderabad, just a midweek game, not massively important in the grand scheme of the tournament at that stage. We batted first, we batted well and I was walking in between the overs and probably just after the powerplay, the stands go really far back and I am sort of looking around and I thought, my god this place is full.”
Jos Buttler
“90,000 people watching Gujarat Titans versus Sunrisers Hyderabad on a Thursday night or something for a mid-tournament league game.”
Jos Buttler
