Jos Buttler vital member of team, willing to bat at any position: Joe Root

Ahead of the third and deciding Test match against West Indies, England skipper Joe Root backed the out of form wicketkeeper-batsman Jos Buttler saying, he is the "vital" member of the team who is willing to bat at any position.

Buttler has just scored a total of 84 runs in four innings of the ongoing series including the highest score of 40 runs in the last Test's first inning.

"If you look at the last game, both times he was left in a situation where he basically gave his wicket up for the good of the group. That's the sort of player he is and how he goes about his cricket. That's why he's so vital to our team: because he's willing to play in a manner that suits the situation that we need from him at any given point," ESPNcricinfo quoted Root as saying.
 

The 29-year-old batsman opened the batting along with Ben Stokes in the second innings at Old Trafford. He failed to put any run on the scoreboard and departed on a duck.

"It must have been quite hard for him. In the first innings, he got himself in a position where he felt good and he was playing some good cricket. Then we lost a couple of wickets at the other end and he had to get on with it. I thought he could easily have got 70-odd not out and he's in a different place, feeling on top of the world with his batting again," Root said.

"In both first innings in this series, he has looked one of our better players in many ways. That's the thing he's got to try to look at. I feel a score is just around the corner for him," he added.

England won the second Test by 113 runs and levelled the three-match series at 1-1. The final game will commence later in the day at Old Trafford.