According to SportsTak, England wicketkeeper-batter Jos Buttler will miss the three-match ODI tour of South Africa in early January 2027 as he continues rehabilitation from hamstring surgery.
Buttler sustained the injury during England's home ODI series against Sri Lanka in 2025 and underwent successful surgery, the report said. He said the surgeon and doctors indicated a timeline of 12 to 16 weeks from the date of surgery to return to playing, adding he hopes to have a bat in hand well before that mark.
Franchise cricket before international return
Buttler was retained by Durban Super Giants for SA20 2027, which begins January 19 against Pretoria Capitals and runs through February 21, according to SportsTak. He is then set to play for Gujarat Titans in IPL 2027.
The England ODI series against Pakistan from May 15 to 26 clashes with the IPL window, and England's subsequent home summer includes a one-off Test and the Ashes, the outlet reported.
That schedule pushes Buttler's likely England comeback to the white-ball series against New Zealand — three T20Is and five ODIs concluding September 25, 2027 — nearly two weeks before England's ODI World Cup 2027 opener against Bangladesh.
Buttler: 'I definitely don't want to rush it'
"It [rehabilitation] is never straightforward or linear, is it? You'll probably have some really good weeks, might have a week where it pushes you back," Buttler said on his "For the Love of Cricket" podcast with Stuart Broad.
"But I definitely don't want to rush it. There's so much cricket ahead next year, and obviously a few more years - hopefully - left of my career. If it takes me a week or two longer to get it right, I'm going to take that time."
Buttler sees layoff as chance to refresh
Buttler said he was trying to see the silver linings of the layoff, noting that he had a long period at home, which cricketers rarely get. He acknowledged it was enforced by injury but said it would be nice to spend a block of time at home to get the hamstring right and also have three or four months to refresh mentally and get really fit, adding that the plan was to come back stronger than when he left.
England missing experience in middle order
England have felt Buttler's absence in the ongoing ODI tri-series in Pakistan against Pakistan and Sri Lanka, SportsTak reported. Jordan Cox scored 76 against Sri Lanka at The Oval but has managed only 18 and a single-digit score in two innings in Rawalpindi.
Captain Harry Brook has lacked the counsel of his predecessor, a void evident when Sri Lanka chased down a record 430 against England. England are already out of contention for the tri-series final.
Cox faces his next test on England's white-ball tour of Australia next month, comprising three ODIs and five T20Is.
Buttler's record and milestones ahead
Buttler is England's third-highest ODI run-scorer with 5,678 runs from 176 innings at an average just over 39 and a strike rate of 115.54, including 11 centuries and 30 fifties, according to SportsTak. Upon return, he will also have a chance to become the leading run-scorer in T20 internationals.
The exact date of Buttler's surgery — and thus his precise return-to-play window — remains unclear, as does whether he will be fully fit for the SA20 opener on January 19. Gujarat Titans are expected to retain him ahead of the IPL 2027 mini-auction. England's squad for the South Africa tour has not been announced, and Buttler's fitness and selection for the World Cup will depend on his progress through the franchise season and the New Zealand series.