Jos Buttler has mixed feelings after striking his maiden Test century but ultimately being unable to stop England going to the brink of a heavy defeat at Trent Bridge.
The 27-year-old battled valiantly alongside Ben Stokes, keeping the Indian bowlers at bay for over four hours, before eventually falling for 106 to Jasprit Bumrah.
A maiden Test century leaves Buttler with great pride but it comes with a tinge of disappointment after he wasn’t able to see out the rest of day four.
“The hundred was obviously a huge moment for me personally and I’m lost for words to describe it really,” said Buttler.
“It has been a long time coming and it is definitely my proudest moment in an England shirt.
“To prove you can do it at this level is a huge thing, not just for yourself, but to do it for your team and show that you belong is extremely satisfying.
“It was important for the side to turn up, show character and make them work hard and I think we did that.
“Even those two guys at the end battling hard to make sure we come back tomorrow and we don’t just roll over.
“The new ball was going to be a big phase of the game for us and it’s disappointing we couldn’t last a little bit longer.”
Having been out of the Test side for a couple of years, Buttler has admitted that he thought his time may never come again in the five-day arena.
Now, with a maiden hundred to his name, he is hoping it is the start of a long and fulfilling career in the red ball game.
“It has been a long time coming and I think it is the first red ball century I have scored in about five years,” said Buttler.
“I wasn’t a million miles away a couple of months ago and I did think that it might never come.
“There were times that I didn’t think I would play Test cricket again so to come back and make a century gives me a huge sense of fulfilment.
“Now it’s about backing it up and I certainly have the hunger to do just that.”
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