England Captain Buttler Frustrated by World Cup Failure, but Belief Remains Unshaken

Although England's miserable World Cup campaign and his own batting failure have frustrated him, captain Jos Buttler insisted that it hasn't affected his faith in the team or in himself.

England's World Cup defense came to an official end on Saturday when they lost to Australia, their fiercest rivals, by 33 runs. In the seven games they have played in the tournament thus far, it was their sixth loss.

"I wouldn't say that the belief is shattered; rather, the frustration just intensifies. These are really good players, as I mentioned before," Buttler remarked following Australia's loss.

Even with their wealth of skill and expertise, the England players don't look good. Buttler is one of the most destructive players in the game, but during the World Cup, his form has failed him.

"There's a lot of frustration because my game is believed in as much as it has ever been. I felt in the best shape I've ever been in going into the competition. Thus, even though I'm sitting here with this tournament under my belt, it doesn't make you doubt your beliefs.

"I have to make sure that I'm the last person to lose faith in myself. I'll give up on myself much later than you guys will," he continued.

The batter-wicketkeeper insisted that his poor batting performance had nothing to do with the responsibility of captaincy.

I would not say the captaincy, though. Prior to this tournament, I had enjoyed having that responsibility in T20 and ODI cricket. It seems to have highlighted a lot of my batting's best features. Thus, it has been aggravating. Even though Buttler is accustomed to the conditions in India, his inability to score runs has confused him.

"I'm not sure why I'm not performing to the standard I set for myself. It's not as though I don't know the conditions or the grounds—you know, and as a captain, you want to lead from the front—because I've played a lot of cricket in India and in the IPL.

"So, of all the things that have happened on this trip, I'd say my own form has been my biggest frustration, because you want to lead from the front as a captain." England, who are at the bottom of the table, run the risk of missing out on the 2025 Champions Trophy, as the top seven teams at the World Cup and the hosts Pakistan are expected to qualify. To have a chance at qualifying, they must win their final two matches against Pakistan and the Netherlands.

Indeed, precisely by that measure. As you can see, we're interested in competing in the Champions Trophy, but first we have to win some cricket matches," Buttler continued.

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