Former Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Rajasthan Royals (RR) intend to keep Jos Buttler at home for the foreseeable future in the T20 League. According to media report, England white-ball captain – who will be leading the side in the ODI World Cup 2023 in India later this year – has been offered a four-year deal by IPL side Rajasthan Royals.
According to England’s ‘Daily Telegraph’ newspaper, it is not clear whether Buttler has accepted the offer which is believed to be worth millions of pounds every year. “It is understood that the offer to Buttler is yet to be formally tabled, and it is unclear whether the T20 World Cup-winning captain intends to accept the deal. The exact value is unknown, but it would be worth millions of pounds each year given his earning capacity in the competition,” the report read.
Buttler has an amazing record in the IPL, he was the Orange Cap winner for scoring 863 runs in 17 matches in the IPL 2022 season leading RR into the finals against Gujarat Titans. In 96 IPL matches, Buttler has scored 3,223 runs at an average of 37.92 with 5 hundreds and 19 fifties at a strike-rate of 148.32.
The England captain has been with the Royals since the 2018 IPL, and has been a key member of their side, which is captained by India international Sanju Samson. Buttler also plays for Paarl Royals, the team owned by Rajasthan in South Africa’s SA20 league, which launched this year. In the Caribbean Premier League, they own Barbados Royals.
“England are exploring ways they can keep some degree of control over their players as franchises come more powerful. They are considering multi-year central contracts, as well as raising match fees for all three international formats,” the report said.
10,000 T20 runs for Jos Buttler _#Blast23 pic.twitter.com/Nh4RIchqtl
— Vitality Blast (@VitalityBlast) June 23, 2023
Buttler recently completed 10,000 in T20 cricket. The England wicketkeeper became the 9th batter to achieve this feat.
It is unclear whether a player would be able to hold a multi-year contract on the franchise circuit as well as an England central contract. The Daily Mail reported earlier this year that Jofra Archer was in negotiations with Mumbai Indians about a deal that would require permission from his franchise to play for England.
“Other England players such as Sam Curran, Liam Livingstone (both Punjab Kings) and Jason Roy, of Kolkata Knight Riders, could also be targeted for longer-term deals,” the report added.
