Buttler becomes first to 15,000 T20 runs
Jos Buttler has become the first batter to reach 15,000 runs in T20 cricket, getting there with a single off Eshan Malinga in the fifth over of England's chase in the second T20I against Sri Lanka on Thursday.
The landmark also carried the 36-year-old wicketkeeper past Kieron Pollard at the head of the all-time list. Pollard, frozen on 14,999, had his own chance to arrive first but was left agonisingly short in the Caribbean.
Turning out for Trinbago Knight Riders against Guyana Amazon Warriors on September 11, the West Indian needed 11 and managed 10. It was Trinbago's final outing of a poor Caribbean Premier League campaign, so his tally stopped there.
Buttler started the Sri Lanka series 110 adrift. An innings of 80 from 44 balls in the opener did most of the heavy lifting, and 30 in the second match took him beyond the mark before he fell for exactly that score.
His 15,000 have come from 528 matches at an average of 35.46 and a strike rate of 147.46, gathered across England, Lancashire, Somerset, Manchester Originals, Mumbai Indians, Gujarat Titans, Paarl Royals, Sydney Thunder and Comilla Victorians, among others.
The gap in innings tells the story of two very different jobs. Buttler needed 497 knocks, some 174 fewer than Pollard's 671, largely because he has spent his career batting where the overs are plentiful.
Of those 497, a total of 312 came as an opener or at number three, with a further 131 at four or five. Pollard batted 545 times between numbers five and eight, 104 times at four and only twice at three.
Top spot has changed hands between the pair more than once in recent months, and may do so again. Buttler, though, looks the likelier long-term custodian, still a regular in England colours and still coveted on the franchise circuit.
Pollard, now 39, has long since finished with international cricket and works as a coach and mentor in the Indian Premier League. He remains effective in the competitions he plays, but the fixtures no longer come as thickly.
Behind them, Alex Hales sits on 14,581 from 531 innings, with Chris Gayle, once labelled the T20 Bradman, having closed his career on 14,562 from 455. David Warner has 14,284 from 438 and Virat Kohli 14,218 from 413.
Top ten run-scorers in T20 cricket
Jos Buttler (England) 15,000*
Kieron Pollard (West Indies) 14,999
Alex Hales (England) 14,581
Chris Gayle (West Indies) 14,562
David Warner (Australia) 14,284
Virat Kohli (India) 14,218
James Vince (England) 14,187
Shoaib Malik (Pakistan) 13,571
Quinton de Kock (South Africa) 13,046
Faf du Plessis (South Africa) 12,782