Jos Buttler’s new T20 record needs plenty of perspective – take it with a pinch of salt

Jonhenry Wilson 12 Aug 2026

Jos Buttler is the leading run-scorer in the history of T20 cricket.

Former England skipper Jos Buttler entered the record books earlier in the week when he passed Kieron Pollard to become the all-time leading run scorer in T20 cricket.

On the surface it’s an amazing achievement and it was not surprisingly met with all sorts of fanfare and praise from the British Media. But it’s an achievement that maybe requires a little bit of analysis to determine just how good it actually is.

First up, it’s important to know which statistics count most in T20 cricket. Volume of runs is undoubtedly important, but without a doubt it’s not nearly as important as strike rate or average.

It’s not to say that Jos Buttler is not a great player, but the reality is that volume of runs in T20 is, for the most part, a direct correlation to the number of games a player has played.

Buttler has done well. He is still playing and will undoubtedly score plenty more runs. At present he has a massive 14834 T20 cricket runs to his credit. He averages 35.5 and boasts a strike rate if 147.19.

He has achieved those numbers from a whopping 523 games. To put that into perspective, Buttler has played the ninth most T20 games in the history of the game. Given that he is an opening batsman, we really shouldn’t be surprised to see him at the top of the run scoring charts.

Ahead of Buttler on the list of games played are players like Chris Gayle, Alex Hales, Shoaib Malik and Pollard, amongst others. Notably though, those are all names of players who feature in the top ten of total runs scored as well.

South Africa fans might be surprised to know that there are four Saffas in the top 20 career run scorers. Some of the names are obvious – David Miller features despite being a finisher and not an opener.

Quinton de Kock and Faf du Plessis are both on the list (at ninth and 12th respectively). But it is the player at 20th on the list that puts it into perspective that runs scored is more of a journeyman achievement than anything else.

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At 20th, having played 415 games, for amongst others, sides like South Africa, Delhi Capitals, Desert Vipers, Hampshire, Jaffna Kings, Joburg Super Kings, Khulna Tigers, Khulna Titans, Melbourne Renegades, Multan Sultans… it’s a long list, we will spare you the rest… it’s Rilee Rossouw.

The veteran, who played 29 T20Is for South Africa, was undoubtedly a good player, but he is very far from an all-time great.

Unsurprisingly he’s not the only journeyman cricketer to make that top 20 list of all-time run scorers. Alex Hales is there. So too James Vince, Shoaib Malik and Colin Munro.

Of the players in the top 20, just two average above 40. Virat Kohli and Babar Azam. Two can boast strike rates of 150-plus – Pollard and Glen Maxwell.

The reality is that while consistency will earn you games, it’s not enough on its own to secure a place in the realms of greatness. Buttler is 35 years old. He has a good few years of cricket ahead of him.

He remains a sought-after player in franchise cricket, and he is ranked seventh in the world on the ICC’s T20I batting list. He may well end his career as a potential hall of famer.

But for now, just sitting at the top of the all-time run scorers list is not enough to see him spoken about in the same class as players like Kohli and Chris Gayle.