In describing England’s achievement in reaching the semi-finals of the ICC World T20, Jos Buttler highlighted the team’s tender years and lack of experience on the world stage.

The explosive wicketkeeper-batsman, who scored 66 not out off 37 balls to setup victory over Sri Lanka, believes the naivety and exuberance of youth makes the current adventure in India all the more thrilling.

"We're delighted to get through. We're a young bunch of guys and going through to the semi-finals of a World Cup is very exciting,” said the 25-year-old.

“To replicate what we did in 2010 would be something special. I think one thing we did in that tournament was adapt really well. If we continue to do that as much as we have so far it'll hold us in good stead for the semi-final.

"But we can't get too far ahead of ourselves. We're into the semi-final and we'll go from there."

Sri Lanka, for whom the dramatic defeat in Delhi confirmed an early exit from the competition, are a team in transition following the retirements of Mehela Jayawardena and Kumar Sangakkara.

However, with the likes of Tillakaratne Dilshan, Rangana Herath and Dinesh Chandimal joining captain Angelo Matthews in the defending champions’ XI, their experience in international cricket dwarfed that of their opposition, making the achievement of Eoin Morgan’s men all the more remarkable. 

Matthews almost pulled off a miraculous escape for the men in blue as 15-4 after three overs became 22 to win off 12 balls, in pursuit of 172 for victory.

Chris Jordan’s four wicket haul, together with nerves of steel from Ben Stokes delivering the game’s final over, ensured that Matthews’ unbeaten 73 off 54 balls was in vain.

Having seen his men slide from a position of utopian strength to suddenly becoming second favourites, only to then force victory with a herculean effort at the last, Morgan unsurprisingly praised the character of his side.

"This gives us a great deal of confidence. I think in three of our wins we've had to show an immense amount of character," he said.

"This was completely different in the way we were way ahead of the game, had them four down quite early and then Angelo got them back into the game.

"It asked a completely different question of us. But we showed quite a lot, both with the bat and the ball. We showed we are capable of playing both smart cricket and aggressive cricket.

"I think we've struggled to do that in the last six to eight months or so and it's an area we are constantly trying to improve, but today went a long way to doing that."

"They were in the game right until the end so Stokes' last over was as crucial as it gets.

"We'll take a lot of confidence from the overall performance. We can give it a couple of days to let the dust settle, reflect on what happened and take the absolute beauties into the semi-final."

England are likely to face New Zealand in the last four, while Australia and India face-off today for the chance to join the West Indies in the other side of the draw.

 

England are returning to the scene of their Ashes triumph in 2016 for Royal London One-Day Internationals against Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

Don't miss the opportunity to watch some of the best players in the world go toe-to-toe in the unique surroundings of Trent Bridge and secure your seats now.