Jos Buttler emphasized the need for England to "dust ourselves down" after a significant 36-run defeat by Australia in Barbados on Saturday, which jeopardized their T20 World Cup defense.

Australia surged at the start of the match at Kensington Oval, posting a formidable 201-7 in their 20 overs. England, after a promising start, faltered and ended at 165-6. This defeat left England winless, as their opening game against Scotland was rained out.

Australia, now leading Group B with two wins, are on course to become the first nation to simultaneously hold all three global cricket titles: Test, one-day, and T20.

David Warner was Australia's top scorer with 39, while spinner Adam Zampa earned the player of the match title with figures of 2-28, including the crucial wicket of Buttler for 42.

"They came out with a lot of intent and played really well and put us under a lot of pressure straight away," Buttler said. "It was tough to drag it back from there. They bowled really well in that middle phase, took wickets at regular times and defended really well."

Buttler stressed that England must approach their remaining games against Oman and Namibia with confidence. "It's all laid out what we need to do so we need to dust ourselves down and go again," he added.

Buttler, having won the toss in Bridgetown, saw Australia’s openers Warner and Travis Head aggressively attack England’s bowlers. Will Jacks conceded 22 runs in his first over, and Mark Wood matched this in his opening over as Australia sped to 55-0 after four overs, exploiting a short boundary.

Moeen Ali eventually dismissed Warner for 39, and Jofra Archer bowled Head for 34, reducing Australia to 74-2. However, Mitchell Marsh (35) and Glenn Maxwell (28) maintained momentum, with Marcus Stoinis adding a rapid 30 off 17 balls to push Australia to 201-7, marking the first 200+ score of the tournament.

England began their chase well, with Buttler and Phil Salt reaching 73-0 by the end of the seventh over. Zampa’s introduction changed the game, as he bowled Salt for 37 with his first ball and dismissed Buttler for 42 shortly after. Mitchell Starc caught Jacks off Stoinis’ bowling, and Australia’s bowlers tightened their grip, allowing only 11 runs in three overs.

Moeen Ali hit three sixes off a Maxwell over, briefly raising hopes, but Jonny Bairstow fell cheaply, and Moeen was out for 25. England’s innings dwindled, with Zampa finishing with impressive figures and Pat Cummins taking 2-23.

Australia captain Mitchell Marsh praised his team's performance, especially the explosive start by Warner and Head. "That was the difference in the game, the way we started, all based around our trust in each other," Marsh said. "The boys set the tone beautifully."

The top two teams from each group advance to the Super 8 stage of the competition.