"Don’t mistake that for a lazy environment or a lack of effort" - England captain hits back at Ravi Shastri after IND vs ENG 2025 ODI series

England captain Jos Buttler has defended his team amid claims of insufficient practice following a humiliating 0-3 whitewash in the ODI series against India. The visitors suffered a 142-run defeat in the series finale at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Wednesday, February 12, to end a nightmarish tour. They had also lost the five-match T20I series 4-1.

After England bowed out in a tame fashion in the third ODI, showcasing minimal intent to stay in their 357-run chase, former India player Ravi Shastri criticized their preparations.

During a post-match interaction, Shastri weighed in on the reports of the visiting side's sporadic net sessions and slammed them for not practicing enough for the subcontinent challenge.

“If you’re not prepared to do the hard yards, you’re not going to improve," Ravi Shastri said (via Fox Sports).

England skipper Jos Buttler, however, refuted claims that the team held a solitary net session. He asserted that the squad's upbeat attitude should not be wrongly interpreted as a lack of effort.

“I’m not sure that’s quite true to be honest. It’s been a reasonably long tour with a few long travel days. There’s been a couple of times where we’ve not trained, but we’ve certainly done plenty of training through the tour," Buttler said after the ODI series against India.

"We obviously try to create a really good environment, but don’t mistake that for a lazy environment or a lack of effort. The guys are desperate to perform and do well and improve," he added.

This marked England's fourth consecutive ODI series loss since the 2023 ODI World Cup. Once known for revolutionizing the format, the team are currently struggling with only four wins in their last 14 matches ahead of the Champions Trophy 2025.

"We've been outplayed by a fantastic team" - England captain Jos Buttler on 3-0 ODI loss to India

After batting first in the first two ODIs, England decided to mix things up by opting to chase in the third match. However, their under-cooked bowling unit was punished by the well-oiled and in-form Indian batting outfit.

The hosts scored 356 in their 50 overs, with Shubman Gill (112) scoring his seventh ODI hundred. England folded for 214 in the 35th over to lose by 142 runs.

Buttler acknowledged that they were the second-best over the course of the series and opined that they needed to work on their style of play.

"The game probably followed a similar pattern to the whole tour. We done well in stages but we've been outplayed by a fantastic team. The learnings are the way we want to play our cricket and the style is the right one. We just haven't been able to do that well enough. Individually and collectively we need to find ways to play that style better," Buttler said during the post-match presentation (via BBC).

England's next match will be against their arch-rivals Australia in the group stage of the Champions Trophy 2025 on February 22.