England skipper Jos Buttler has avoided making any precipitate decisions regarding his captaincy after his team's embarrassing Champions Trophy exit at the hands of Afghanistan on Wednesday. But he did admit that "all possibilities" are on the table with regard to his future as England's white-ball captain.
Even after a brilliant century by Joe Root, England was stunned by an eight-run defeat, bringing their tournament campaign to an untimely end. While chasing a total of 326, they managed 317, with Afghanistan's Ibrahim Zadran being the showstopper with a brilliant 177 and pacer Azmatullah Omarzai picking up a vital five-wicket haul.
In the post-match press conference, Buttler conceded he wasn't prepared to make absolute declarations regarding his captaincy but gave an indication of things to come.
"I don't want to make any emotional comments at the moment. But I think for myself and the other lads at the top, we should keep an open mind," Buttler said at the post-match presentation.
This is England's third straight disappointing ICC tournament campaign under Buttler, having disappointed at the 2023 ODI World Cup in India and the 2024 T20 World Cup in the Americas. The defeat also brings back memories of their 69-run loss to Afghanistan in the group stage of the 2023 World Cup in New Delhi.
Looking back on the game, Buttler spoke of his dismay, especially because England had kept themselves in it until the 48th over, when the fall of Jamie Overton snuffed out their chances.
"It's genuinely disappointing. I believed we had opportunities in the match. Another wonderful game of cricket, but frustrating to finish up on the incorrect side," he added.
England captain also gave credit to Afghanistan's dominance during the last few overs, which proved to be the turning point.
"They escaped from us there in the last 10 overs. Credit to Ibrahim (Zadran), he played a wonderful innings. If we sit back and think about it, 113 off the last 10 took them up to a score that was an excellent score on that wicket."
Buttler also appreciated Joe Root's calm performance in pressure situations and praised his decisive knock of 120 runs.
"Played an unbelievable innings tonight. The pressure he managed in a run-chase. He required one of the other top-six batsmen to hang in with him and push the game deeper."
Afghanistan skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi was also over the moon with the win, praising his team's ongoing improvement on the international stage.
"As a team, we are contented, and I'm sure the entire nation will be content with this victory. We first defeated them in the 2023 World Cup. I always mention that we are getting better day by day as a team, and that is what we've done at the previous two World Cups. Today, it was a close match, but we dominated it nicely. I am content with the outcome," Shahidi said.
He also showered praises on Zadran's magnificent innings, attributing the young batsman for managing pressure impeccably.
"Talented guy. When we were three down at the start, it was too much pressure. But the stand, me and Ibrahim had, was special. I think it was one of the best ODI innings I have ever seen."
Shahidi also highlighted the balance in the Afghan team, where veteran players and young guns go hand in hand.
"The strength of our team is we have skilled youngsters and simultaneously we have old guys who are on the highest level. All know their own role of what they need to do in this team. Hopefully, we carry this momentum into the next game against Australia," he added.
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