England Must Win To Keep T20 World Cup Dreams Alive, Says Buttler

England must "earn the right" to consider T20 World Cup permutations, says Jos Buttler, as his team faces a potential early exit from the group stage.

Matthew Mott's white-ball squad was defeated by Australia on Saturday, June 8, with a 36-run loss that leaves them facing group-stage elimination in their T20I title defence.

This result was compounded by Scotland's decisive victory over Oman, with 41 balls to spare, further damaging England's hopes of progressing via net run-rate.

Another must-win match against Oman looms on Thursday, June 13. England must triumph before considering any other permutations, according to captain Buttler.

"I don't think it's do-or-die quite yet," Buttler told reporters in Antigua. "It's clear what we need to do and how we need to play."

"First and foremost, we need to win the game against Oman to have any chance of moving forward."

"We have to earn the right to try and win the game. If we can get ourselves in a position to affect our net run-rate, that's what we need to do."

Beaten in Bridgetown.#EnglandCricket |#ENGvAUSpic.twitter.com/FV0Mn0GGlh

— England Cricket (@englandcricket)June 8, 2024

England will then face Namibia on Saturday to conclude their group-stage campaign. However, two victories may still not suffice for Buttler's side.

Scotland could still eliminate them by defeating Australia in their final match after England meets Namibia. The Scots will have a clear picture of what is required.

"We've looked at a few aspects but it's going to change throughout the game," Buttler added.

"We don't need to expend too much energy today and tomorrow saying 'we need to score 'X' amount of runs or win by this much'. Those things will develop on the day."

"That's the situation we find ourselves in. We have to be aware of it but not be consumed by it."

"If we focus on that first and forget about trying to win the game and lose, then we've got no chance anyway."

"I'd rather have some kind of chance going into the last game and know exactly what we need."

England's white-ball struggles at the tournament have raised questions about Buttler's captaincy and coach Mott's tenure.

Buttler has no interest in speculation surrounding his leadership.

"I care more about the team than the media and outside noise," he added. "That's always there; it's part of international sport. If you reach this level, you have to deal with it."

"It's probably harder to ignore it nowadays, but there's a level of acceptance. Our focus has to be on our performance."

"I've played long enough to know that sports build people up and criticise when things go wrong, especially in England."

"I do the same when watching football or rugby – 'how did he miss that?' or 'someone dropped the ball over the line'. Simple things like that."

"People care. That's why we're able to do what we do because people care and want to watch. We're a proud team; we want to perform well for all the fans."

"But honestly, all our focus is on us and how well we can play. If we play as well as we can, we'll make our fans happy."