England star Jos Buttler is ready to take his recent hammering of Australia’s Test attack into his first away Ashes

Less than a month ago Jos Buttler put the Australian Test bowling attack to the sword at the T20 World Cup and is taking all that confidence into the Ashes.

England star Jos Buttler has declared his intention to be “fearless” as he prepares for his first Ashes series in Australia, armed with the recent memory of destroying the opposition, albeit in a different format.

Butler took the Australian Test bowling attack apart less than a month ago at the T20 World Cup, smashing an epic 71 off just 32 balls in a batting blitzkrieg that delivered the eventual champions their only loss of the tournament.

But the dynamic batsman has never played a Test against Australia, in Australia, and is well aware it’s a different beast.

Stymied also by Queensland weather more like he’d experience at home, Buttler’s preparation for the series has been “disjointed”.

But now freed from quarantine, Buttler said he was ready to ride the Ashes rollercoaster knowing when he produced his best it was “going to be pretty good”.

“I feel like I have nothing to lose, to be honest,” he said on Tuesday.

”It’s sort of been disjointed, that (year) just gone; some good form and some bad form and in the year before as well. It’s the first time I’m experiencing an Ashes series [in Australia], so I’m fully determined to enjoy all the challenges that throws up. I’m excited to experience it, the good the bad, and I’m sure the highs and lows along the way.

“As a player at the minute I’m trying to bring a fearless approach and to truly try and embrace the opportunity. I know when I get to somewhere near my best that’s going to be pretty good.”

Buttler has to keep reminding himself he’s in usually sunny Queensland rather than back home in the UK, such are the awful weather conditions that continue to hamper preparations for the Ashes series opener at the Gabba next week.

England’s Jos Buttler is preparing as best as he can for the Ashes. Picture: Glyn Kirk / AFP

Rain ruined last week’s practice match between England and the English Lions, and it was a similar story on Tuesday, with the big wet forcing the abandonment of the entire first day of a similar game between the same teams.

“It’s pretty bleak, to be honest,” wicketkeeper Buttler said.

“It could be November in England as opposed to November in Brisbane.

“That’s frustrating for everyone. We were very much looking forward to getting out on the field (on Tuesday) and playing some cricket.

“Hopefully in the next few days it can improve ... (but) it looks like there’s some rain around. It’s just something we have to deal with.”

Jos Buttler was unstoppable in the T20 World Cup clash against Australia. Picture: Francois Nel / Getty Images

Buttler, however, part of England’s squad at the recent T20 World Cup, isn’t concerned by a compromised Ashes preparation, which isn’t ideal considering his recent lack of red-ball cricket.

“In this day and age, lots of us jump between formats quite often. In the Covid era, things have changed quite a lot as well,” he said.

The changes are ongoing, with the pandemic’s new variant, Omicron, having the potential to tighten restrictions for players and cause further border closures.

Such border issues could prevent the families of England players travelling to Australia for the tour.

“It’s a hypothetical situation at the moment and until we get told that something’s changed, there’s no decision to make,” Buttler said.

“It just adds to the unknowns; the things I don’t really need to worry about at the moment.

“If something like that happens, I have to get the information and we can work through it and see how that looks.”

Ben Stokes at England training in Brisbane. Picture: Chris Hyde / Getty Images

Australia’s preparations have also been hampered, not only by the weather, but also a sexting scandal, leading to Tim Paine giving up the captaincy and stepping away from the sport.

“Probably both sides are excited for the cricket to start and for the off-field distractions to hopefully move into the background,” Buttler said.

“We can start really talking about some great cricket on the field.

“There always seems to be certain things that happen before an Ashes series and as players it’s very important that you don’t get too drawn into that or too drawn into what the opposition are doing, and give yourself the best chance as an individual and a team to play really well on the day.”