England captain Jos Buttler is facing scrutiny over his batting form following an unconvincing start to the T20 World Cup campaign marked by a lack of big scores.
The defending champions’ passage through the group phase proved a mixed bag, offering flashes of quality amid generally underwhelming displays.
While Will Jacks and Sam Curran provided reasons for optimism, the faltering output of the team’s talismanic leader remains a significant worry.
We analyse the data behind the skipper’s lean patch and the wider themes emerging from their first four matches.
Buttler’s quiet start raises questions
Low scores of three against both Italy and Scotland resulted in a total return of just 53 runs across the entire group stage.
This represents a concerningly low yield for one of the most destructive batters in white-ball history.
The 35-year-old has endured a quiet winter, failing to register a half-century in 15 international innings across all formats.
However, an unbeaten 97 in the SA20 earlier in January suggests the wicketkeeper-batter still possesses the ability to dominate attacks.
The manner of his dismissals against Italy and Scotland bore striking similarities, with both resulting from miscued drives to mid-off.
“Maybe he is trying too hard to get a score on the board,” said former England team-mate Dawid Malan.
“Knowing him and playing with him, his gameplan is generally to look to the off side first and then pick up leg side, so maybe he’s just going back to his basics.”
Technical issues against pace and spin
All three of Buttler’s dismissals against seamers came from deliveries clocked between 75mph and 82mph.
Since the start of 2024, the opener has struggled against pace bowlers in that specific bracket more than any other type.
Perhaps more alarming is his record against slower bowling as the tournament shifts to the spin-friendly surfaces of Sri Lanka.
The skipper’s average against spin in T20 internationals has plummeted to 24.1 since the start of 2024, down from 61.8 in the preceding two years.
Batting unit lacking conversion
Despite posting a commanding 202-7 against Italy, the collective batting unit has rarely fired on all cylinders.
England wobbled chasing 153 against Scotland and were bowled out for just 166 during a defeat by West Indies.
The primary issue appears to be converting starts into match-winning contributions rather than getting established at the crease.
Englishmen have reached 25 runs on 14 occasions – the most of any side – yet only four of these innings have evolved into half-centuries.
Will Jacks rejected the suggestion that batters were failing to take responsibility.
“Responsibility in T20 can be misunderstood,” said Jacks.
“Sometimes the responsibility is to try and hit 30 off the over.”
South Korea have claimed gold in the women’s 3000m relay while Arianna Fontana became Italy’s most decorated Olympian by securing silver.
The Korean quartet crossed the line first in a dramatic conclusion to the event on day 12 of the 2026 Winter Games.
It marks a return to the top step of the podium for the Asian nation, reasserting their traditional dominance in the discipline.
Fontana stands alone
While South Korea celebrated victory, the spotlight shone equally on the Italian team in second place.
The result secured a historic 14th Olympic medal for short track legend Arianna Fontana.
This latest podium finish means the veteran skater has now surpassed all compatriots to become the most decorated Italian in Olympic history.
It extends a remarkable career for the ‘Blonde Angel’, who has remained a fixture at the pinnacle of the sport for nearly two decades.
Drama on the ice
The final was a tense affair that saw the major nations battling for position throughout the 27 laps.
Ultimately, the Koreans held their nerve in the closing stages to deny the host nation a home gold.
The victory adds another chapter to South Korea’s illustrious record in the women’s relay event.
India maintained their perfect start to the Men’s T20 World Cup with a 17-run victory over the Netherlands, despite a third successive duck for opener Abhishek Sharma.
Shivam Dube struck a blistering 66 to rescue the hosts after a shaky start in Ahmedabad.
The result ensures India finish top of Group A with an unblemished record of four wins from four matches.
Sharma makes unwanted history
With Super 8s qualification already secured, the home side elected to bat first.
However, the spotlight immediately fell on Sharma, who is currently ranked as the world’s number one T20 batter.
He faced just three deliveries before falling to a back-of-a-length ball from Aryan Dutt.
The dismissal makes the opener the first player in history to record ducks in their first three innings of a T20 World Cup.
It marks a difficult period for the batter, who has now registered five ducks in this calendar year.
Middle order powers hosts to imposing total
Following the early setback, the tournament favourites needed impetus from their middle order.
Dube provided the spark, smashing four fours and six sixes in a 31-ball cameo.
The left-hander found able support from Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav, who contributed 31 and 34 respectively.
Hardik Pandya added a useful 30 to help set a target of 194, despite Dutt and Logan van Beek taking five wickets between them.
Dutch chase stifled by spin
The Netherlands entered the contest knowing their tournament was over following Pakistan’s earlier win over Namibia.
Their chase struggled for momentum against disciplined bowling from the hosts.
Varun Chakravarthy was the pick of the attack, claiming clinical figures of 3-14 from his three overs.
The mystery spinner tore through the middle order, leaving the Dutch reeling at 94-4 inside 13 overs.
Despite late boundaries from Zach Lion-Cachet and Noah Croes, the visitors never threatened the target and finished on 176-7.
US snowboarder Jake Canter has won Olympic slopestyle bronze, nine years after being told he would never ride again following a severe brain injury.
The 22-year-old defied grim medical prognoses to finish third on Wednesday, securing a medal in one of the Games’ most technical events.
China’s Su Yiming claimed the gold medal, while Taiga Hasegawa of Japan took silver ahead of the American.
Canter’s podium finish represents a remarkable comeback from a childhood accident that nearly ended his life.
Defying the odds
Canter fractured his skull in four places during a trampoline accident at a sports camp when he was 13 years old.
The incident resulted in a four-day coma and the permanent loss of hearing in his right ear.
His recovery faced a severe setback six months later when he contracted meningitis, leading to a second coma.
Surgeons utilised bone cement to repair his skull, leaving the teenager to relearn fundamental skills such as walking and talking.
“I really just hope I made 13-year-old me lying in that hospital bed proud,” said Canter.
“This is for him, and everyone who supported me.”
Doctors had advised the slopestyle specialist to avoid snowboarding entirely due to the severity of his head trauma.
“I wanted to prove every doctor wrong that told me I couldn’t do this,” Canter added. “That’s a big part of this.”
High-stakes finale
The bronze medal was secured under difficult conditions on a course that had drawn criticism for its tight layout.
Competing with a broken left hand, the US rider faced an all-or-nothing scenario on his third and final run.
He successfully executed a 1980-degree spin off the final jump, the only athlete to land the trick on the day.
Judges deliberated for three minutes before confirming a score sufficient to place him on the podium.
Canter celebrated the moment by tearing off his goggles, marking the culmination of a recovery process that required him to rebuild his equilibrium from scratch.
Gymnastics icon Simone Biles has met with American figure skater Ilia Malinin to offer support following his dramatic collapse at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.
Malinin arrived in Italy as the clear favourite for gold but endured a nightmare free skate, falling twice and failing to execute his signature quadruple axel.
The errors caused the 21-year-old to plummet from first place after the short program to finish eighth in the final standings.
The weight of expectation
Visibly distressed following his performance, the skater later posted a cryptic message on social media addressing the burden of high-stakes competition.
“On the world’s biggest stage, those who appear the strongest may still be fighting invisible battles on the inside,” Malinin wrote on Instagram.
“Vile online hatred attacks the mind and fear lures it into the darkness, no matter how hard you try to stay sane through the endless insurmountable pressure.”
He described the experience as moments flashing before his eyes, resulting in an “inevitable crash”.
Biles enters ‘protection mode’
Biles, who was in the stands for the free skate, immediately recognised the signs of an athlete struggling under the immense weight of global expectation.
The 28-year-old experienced her own high-profile difficulties at the Tokyo Games in 2021, where she withdrew from several events due to the ‘twisties’ – a mental block dangerous to gymnasts.
Having successfully returned to win three golds at Paris 2024, the most decorated gymnast in history felt compelled to contact her compatriot immediately.
“I was really worried about how his mental health was going to be,” Biles told Olympics.com.
“When you’re expected to skate a performance of your lifetime and you don’t deliver, I worry how that affects his mental health and how the world is going to view that.”
Biles admitted she had “been through that first hand” and immediately went into “protection mode”.
Sharing lived experiences
The two American stars met in Milan on Tuesday after Biles decided she needed to offer direct reassurance.
She prepared a list of bullet points to send to the ‘Quad God’ to ensure he knew he had support away from the rink.
“It was really heartbreaking,” Biles said.
“Seeing someone and talking to someone that has gone through the same thing and validating that… He’s like, ‘Oh my gosh, yes, this is exactly how I feel. This is how to get over it or process it’.”
The seven-time Olympic gold medallist hopes the intervention helped Malinin navigate the immediate aftermath of his disappointment.
Rebecca Morrison produced a miraculous final stone to secure a stunning victory over the United States and keep Team GB’s curling semi-final hopes alive.
The British skip delivered an incredible shot under immense pressure to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat against their American rivals.
Defeat would have likely ended Great Britain’s chances of progressing to the knockout stages of the competition.
A moment of magic on the ice
Trailing as the end approached, the British rink needed something special to overturn the deficit.
Morrison navigated a crowded house with pinpoint precision to land the stone exactly where it was required to steal the win.
Commentators covering the dramatic fixture were left in disbelief at the execution of the delivery.
“How on earth have they done that?”
Semi-final dream remains
The result provides a crucial lifeline for the squad as they look to climb the round-robin standings.
This victory ensures their destiny remains within reach heading into the final fixtures of the group stage.
The team must now maintain this momentum to secure a place in the medal matches.
International Ski and Snowboard Federation president Johan Eliasch admits the decision to invite Russian and Belarusian athletes to the Milan-Cortina Winter Paralympics “has not been easy”.
Six competitors from Russia and four from Belarus are set to participate in alpine skiing, cross-country skiing and snowboarding at the Games, which begin on 6 March.
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) had previously lifted its ban on athletes from the two nations in September.
Legal rulings force federation’s hand
While individual governing bodies, including the FIS, initially refused to lift their own sanctions, a successful appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) overturned that stance.
Consequently, the 10 athletes have been granted bipartite commission invitations to compete in Italy.
Speaking to BBC Sport, Eliasch acknowledged the complexity of the situation.
“It has not been easy. What we’re dealing with here is an issue that is divisive, where people have different feelings depending on where they come from. It’s something that we have to respect.”
The federation chief emphasised the distinction between individuals and state politics.
“Athletes can’t choose where they were born. On the other hand, they can’t be used for PR purposes in their home countries to promote the war.”
“It’s our duty to make sure that athletes are not weaponised for political purposes.”
Ukraine condemns ‘outrageous’ return
The inclusion of these athletes will mark a significant shift, as the Russian flag has not been flown at a Paralympic Games since Sochi 2014.
Previous bans were instated due to the country’s state-sponsored doping programme and subsequently extended following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Ukrainian sports minister Matvii Bidnyi strongly criticised the move earlier on Wednesday.
“The flags of Russia and Belarus have no place at international sporting events that stand for fairness, integrity and respect,” Bidnyi stated on social media.
“These are the flags of regimes that have turned sport into a tool of war, lies and contempt.”
Ukraine has also secured bipartite slots across three sports for the upcoming Games.
Strict vetting processes applied
Bipartite commission invitations are reserved for elite competitors who may have missed qualification opportunities due to “extraordinary circumstances”.
The IPC allocates these slots based on recommendations from international federations such as the FIS.
Eliasch insisted that despite the controversy, the process has adhered to legal requirements.
“It is difficult, and in our case in the end, the courts decided the outcome.”
“Everything has been done by the book. We’ve had strict vetting schemes of the people who do participate to make sure they don’t have any affiliation with the military.”
Sahibzada Farhan hit a sparkling century to guide Pakistan into the T20 World Cup Super 8s with a dominant victory over Namibia.
The 29-year-old opener smashed a 58-ball hundred to set up a massive total of 199-3.
Namibia were never in the chase and crumbled to 97 all out in reply.
The result confirms Pakistan’s progression alongside India from Group A, eliminating both the United States and the Netherlands.
Opener bounces back from India duck
Farhan has enjoyed a productive tournament, having already registered scores of 47 against the Dutch and 73 against the co-hosts.
However, the right-hander arrived at the crease looking to make amends after failing to score in the high-profile clash with India.
He returned to his destructive best here, dominating off the back foot and punishing anything loose through the leg side.
The batter was particularly severe on WP Myburgh, launching the leg-spinner for two massive sixes over cow corner.
He also took 30 runs off just 13 balls from medium-pacer Jack Brassell as the 2009 champions accelerated.
Tariq spins web around Namibia
While Farhan provided the fireworks, he found able support from Shadab Khan, who contributed a brisk 36 from 22 deliveries.
Pakistan’s bowlers then took control, with the associate nation struggling to cope with the turning ball.
Louren Steenkamp offered brief resistance with 23, but the chase never gained momentum.
Mystery spinner Usman Tariq was the standout performer with the ball, claiming impressive figures of 4-16.
His spell included a beautiful googly which completely bamboozled Ruben Trumpelmann to seal a comprehensive win.