England vs Pakistan, 1st ODI, Preview: Full-strength hosts set for final International assignment before World Cup

The big day is arriving very soon and it is getting difficult for the fans to curb their excitement levels. While Indian cricket fans do have IPL to divert their minds for another five days, cricket fans all over the globe are eagerly waiting for the grandiose tournament to kick-start. Hosts and hot favourites England will be planting their strongest side in the ODI series against Pakistan, which should embark their journey to glory.

Pakistan will be having a very tough time in the coming 10 days. Going by England’s domestic cricket results, it is going to be a belter of a track for batting pretty much every game and the English batters are in the form of their life. There will be huge scores registered in this series and that should catch global attention.

Some of the English cricketers like Jofra Archer, Jos Buttler and Jonny Bairstow had a sensational outing in the IPL. The hosts look almost impregnable, but history suggests, one has to always expect the unexpected from Pakistan.

Playing Combinations

England

All the big boys are back in town, much to the disappointment of Pakistan’s bowling unit. Jonny Bairstow and Jos Buttler enjoyed a great time in the IPL and will surely provide a major threat to the Pakistani bowlers. Moeen Ali has picked up an injury due to which he will be replaced by either one of Joe Denly or Jofra Archer. Plunkett, Mark Wood and Chris Woakes will be forming the pace trio with Adil Rashid being the lone spinner.

Predicted XI

Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Joe Denly/Jofra Archer, Chris Woakes, Adil Rashid, Liam Plunkett, Mark Wood

Pakistan

Imam and Fakhar have been Pakistan’s opening combination for a while now and there will be no tinkering done with that. Babar Azam and Haris Sohail will be crucial in the middle order and the good news for them is that the latter has been scoring a lot of runs. Mohammed Amir will be giving his final audition to make a surprise entry into the World Cup squad and he will be accompanied by Hasan Ali and Shaheen Afridi in the pace department.

Hafeez and Malik are not available for this game and Asif Ali, the designated finisher is expected to get the nod in the playing XI.

Predicted XI

Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Haris Sohail, Sarfraz Ahmed, Asif Ali, Imad Wasim, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Mohammed Amir, Shaheen Afridi

Focus will be on

Jos Buttler (England)

Arguably England’s most important batsman in the middle order, Jos Buttler now has a chance to become a “Legend” in the coming few months. All eyes will be on him when he comes out to bat and it will be interesting to see if the 28-year-old can cope with that pressure. He has been in brilliant form off-late and recently became a father. Things are going pretty well for him and he would love to continue that positivity into this series, and also the World Cup.

Sarfaraz Ahmed (Pakistan)

Last time he was in England captaining the Pakistani side in an ICC tournament, Sarfraz Ahmed in his white blazer collected the ICC Champions Trophy. How much would he and the Pakistani cricket fans love to see those scenes repeating again? His touch with the bat has not been pretty amazing in the last few months, but the captain will be keeping his life on the line to get good results, beginning from this series.

Head to Head

Matches Played – 82 | England won – 49 | Pakistan won – 31 | No Result – 2

Stat Attack

50 – England are one win away from registering 50 ODI wins against Pakistan.

Broadcast Details

TV – Sony Six, Sony Six HD

Live Streaming – Sony LIV

Match Timings – 17:30 IST; 13:00 local

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