Jos Buttler leaves out Virat Kohli, includes sole Indian as he picks his 5 players in dream ODI team

Jos Buttler picked his players for dream team in a conversation with ICC.

England captain Jos Buttler shared five first-choice picks in his dream ODI team ahead of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 and surprisingly left out one of the GOATs of the modern era one-day format - Virat Kohli.

Buttler will be captaining England in the upcoming ICC World Cup 2023 as they look to defend their 50-over World Cup crown. England are already the reigning T20 World Champs and if they win the ODI World Cup as well, it will be a huge sign of their dominance in the limited-overs game.

England will begin their World Cup 2023 tournament with the opening match on October 5 against New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.   

Over the years, Buttler has become one of England's most valued assets in white-ball cricket. He played a crucial role in England's victory at the 2019 ODI World Cup. Buttler recently revealed the first five players he would select for his ideal ODI XI during an engagement with the ICC, based on his wealth of experience and cricket knowledge.

Jos Buttler names five picks for his dream ODI team; leaves Virat Kohli out, picks Rohit Sharma

1. Rohit Sharma

His first pick was India captain Rohit Sharma. Sharma is the only batter with three double-hundreds in ODI format and has over 10,000 runs in his kitty. He is the leading opener in the world today in a 50-over format. He has a remarkable ability to control and accelerate innings, making Rohit a perfect fit for any dream team.

2, Quinton de Kock

Buttler then picked Quinton de Kock of South Africa. De Kock has announced his retirement from ODI cricket and the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup will be his final outing for Proteas in the format. He has 6176 runs in the ODI format and can form a deadly opening pair with Rohit Sharma. His keeping is of top quality, both to pace and to spin.

3. Glenn Maxwell

The all-rounder in Jos Buttler’s dream team will be Australia’s Glenn Maxwell. Maxi, as he is lovingly known, is one of the most devastating hitters of the ball. He can turn the tide of the match with his bat in death overs. With the ball, he is more than handy, as evident from his recent Player of the Match performance against India in the Rajkot ODI.

4, Anrich Nortje

Anrich Nortje was Jos Buttler’s pick for the pacer in his dream ODI team. The South African seamer’s express pace consistently breaches the 145 kph mark. His ability to extract bounce and generate genuine pace has troubled many top-order batters. Unfortunately, Nortje will not be part of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 due to injury.

5. Adil Rashid

Jos Buttler’s final pick as a spinner was his teammate, Adil Rashid. The leggie is one of the premier ODI spinners in the world. He is a vital part of England’s scheme of things and was part of their 2019 World Cup win. Rashid’s ability to turn the ball both ways and deliver crucial breakthroughs in the middle overs makes him invaluable.