IND vs ENG, T20 World Cup: England captain Jos Buttler hails team’s character after massive semi-final win

England captain Jos Buttler hailed his team after their comprehensive 10-wicket victory over India in the second semi-final of the T20 World Cup in Adelaide on Thursday.

Buttler , who forged a record 170-run opening stand with Player of the Match Alex Hales, emphasised on the character shown by the team after the defeat at the hands of Ireland earlier in the Super 12s to reach a second T20 World Cup final in three editions.

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“(The Ireland defeat) feels a long time ago. The character we’ve shown to get through the tournament since then, and put in our best performance today, has been amazing,” Buttler said in the post-match presentation after England stormed into the final, where they face Pakistan at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday.

Hales, who had been included in World Cup squad in place of Jonny Bairstow, has been a revelation so far for England in the tournament and went a step further with an unbeaten 86 off just 47 deliveries that was studded with four fours and seven maximums. Buttler had played the supporting role in the partnership for the most part while Hales went about knocking the stuffing out of the Indian bowling unit.

Buttler, who replaced Eoin Morgan as the white-ball captain earlier this summer, spoke highly of his opening partner and felt the two complemented each other quite well.

“Hales was tough to bowl at today, he used the dimensions of the ground, and we complement each other perfectly. He was a brilliant partner today,” Buttler said after the game.

England now face one last hurdle in Pakistan, the side that had beaten them three decades back in a World Cup final at the same venue, albeit in a different format. The Men in Green had earlier qualified for the knockouts on the back of three consecutive victories in the Super 12s along with some of the other results going their way, before handing New Zealand a seven-wicket defeat in the first semi-final in Sydney.

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