"It's a shame" - Jos Buttler pulls out of SA20 2025 for England duties

England wicketkeeper-batter Jos Buttler won't return to the SA20 for the Paarl Royals in 2025 to keep his focus on national duties. He called it a "shame" and expressed his gratitude to the Royals' fans in a social media message on Tuesday, August 6.

The T20 tournament will run from January 9 to February 8, 2025, and England are scheduled to tour India for five T20Is and three ODIs between January 22 and February 12. Although under pressure for a while, Buttler is expected to continue as the white-ball captain till the 2025 Champions Trophy.

"This is a message to the Paarl Royals fans," Buttler said on Royals' X account. "[I am] disappointed that I won't be coming back to the SA20 this year. There are some England games on and my full focus will be there. It's a shame I won't be coming back to the tournament. I have got a lot of love for the tournament. Huge amount of love for the Paarl Royals and especially the Paarl Royals fans. I wish you all the best in the competition and hopefully, I can come back in the future."

Buttler has been one of the best players at the SA20, leading the runs chart in 2023 and finishing fourth with 408 runs at an average of 40.80 this year. His connection with the Royals franchise runs deep as he also plays a crucial role for the Rajasthan Royals during the IPL.

Paarl Royals' squad without Jos Buttler

The Royals have already replaced Buttler, with ESPNcricinfo reporting that India's Dinesh Karthik will join the franchise as an overseas player in 2025. Karthik retired from internationals and IPL after Royal Challengers Bengaluru's exit in the IPL 2024 playoffs.

Paarl Royals' interim squad: David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Bjorn Fortuin, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dinesh Karthik, Mitchell van Buuren, Codi Yusuf, Keith Dudgeon, Nqaba Peter, Kwena Maphaka, Lhuan-dre Pretorius and Dayyaan Galiem (included after a trade).

More overseas players will join closer to the tournament after SA20 secures their availability.