Pakistan vs England 2nd ODI Preview: Pakistan looks to gain an insurmountable lead

View : 236

5 Min Read

Pakistan vs England 2nd ODI Preview
info
(© Getty Images)

Pakistan vs England 2nd ODI Preview: Pakistan looks to gain an insurmountable lead: Thanks to a fine exhibition of cricket from Pakistan with both the bat and ball, Pakistan gained a 1-0 lead in the 4 match series. While Mohammad Hafeez notched up a fine unbeaten 102*, the bowlers, especially Mohammad Irfan, Shoaib Malik and Yasir Shah, were responsible for reducing England to a chasable target.

The English team would be quite disappointed with their performance in the first ODI. Keeping aside the batting performances of Eoin Morgan and James Taylor, none of the top and middle order batsmen applied themselves in the crease. The bowling looked largely clueless, apart from a fine performance from the youngster Reece Topley.

Here is a look at how the teams look like ahead of the 2nd ODI, which will also be played at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium at Abu Dhabi.

England

The English ODI team were spirited, if not high in confidence, going into the ODI series. And they had every reason to, thanks to their past record at UAE and also considering their recent form against the likes of New Zealand and Australia. But they were in for a reality check after a being outclassed by the Pakistanis.

The English top-order fell like a pack of cards against some decent bowling. The pitch did not have some unforeseen demons; the Pakistani bowlers were right on the money from the start, and the English batsmen did not apply themselves initially. All the three top order batsmen fell either by playing a lazy shot, or lack of footwork. They need to sort out their lethargic approach and pull up their socks.

Both Taylor and Morgan would be satisfied with their performances, but they need to convert their starts into big ones. It was their dismissals which triggered an almighty collapse, and the team ended up scoring a below par total. The lower middle order is another issue which the batsmen need to sort out. Moeen Ali and Woakes should be wary of the team’s situation before going for the big shots in the coming matches. Though Woakes played his part perfectly, Moeen needs to curb his instincts (despite his dismissal coming off a stunner). Innings building has been a serious problem with the new-look English batting order, and it could be severely exploited again like it was in the first ODI.

The bowlers need to take a cue out of their Pakistani counterparts and come out with a plan B. While Topley performed quite well considering his inexperience at the international level, the other bowlers’ performances were a complete let-down. Willey and Woakes were inconsistent, and couldn’t compliment Topley well. The spinners were a complete let-down, and couldn’t replicate what the Pakistani spinners did. While Pakistan tightened the screws with their spin options, both Rashid and Ali were easily negotiated by the Pakistani batsmen. The bowlers, especially the spinners, need to pull up their socks.

Though their performance was good in patches, the team needs a collective effort to pull one back in the second ODI.

Pakistan

For a team marred with inconsistency, Pakistan performed as a well-oiled unit and won the first match comprehensively to send off Younus Khan in a positive note. While the bowling has been as good as it has always been, the way the Pakistani batting order recovered after a shaky start was admirable.

The bowlers were spot on right from the start and the consistency with what Anwar Ali and Mohammad Irfan bowled was the sole reason for reducing England to 14-3. Even when Morgan and Taylor were negotiating well, the spinners struck to their line and reaped dividends. They tightened the screws by bowling in a tight line and length, and the inexperienced English batsmen crumbled to pressure. Credits to Shoaib Malik and Yasir Shah to bring Pakistan back into the game after a solid 133-run partnership. And not to forget some outstanding death bowling from Mohammad Irfan, Anwar Ali and Wahab Riaz, who did not give away a single boundary in the final 10 overs. Sarfaraz Ahmed, the wicket-keeper, was excellent behind the stumps.

The Pakistani chase started off in an inauspicious note, with 3 of the batsmen back into the hut within 10 overs. Both the openers were struck on the pads in front of stumps, whereas Younus Khan fell for one last time in the shorter formats by miscuing a pull shot. But Mohammad Hafeez and Shoaib Malik used their experience to pull off a good partnership, later with the help of Babar Azam, the team chased down the target comfortably.

Overall, they were clinical with their performance, and would look to repeat the same in the 2nd ODI. The fielding was exceptionally good, with the highlight being the stunner to remove Moeen Ali. The only problem going into the second ODI seems to be the openers, who were dismissed cheaply by Topley. Babar Azam looks like a great prospect and has the potential to be a great finisher for Pakistan.

Complacency must be avoided by the Pakistan team, who seem to be a well-oiled unit going into the second ODI.

Team form

England: L L W W L

Pakistan: W W L W L

Pitch

The pitch played as it was expected to play, with ample amount of runs but on a slower side. The second ODI will also be played on the same ground, so a similar pitch like the one in the first ODI can be expected. One can expect the team winning the toss to bat first.

Stats

700: Number of runs Mohammad Hafeez has scored this year, at an average of 43. In the process, he also scored 2 hundreds and 5 fifties.

2: Number of times Pakistan have consecutive matches at Sheikh Zayed Stadium against the same opposition. The last time Pakistan achieved it at his venue was way back in 2008, against West Indies.

18: Combined number of wickets taken by Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez at his venue. Malik and Hafeez have bowled at Sheikh Zayed in 13 and 11 innings respectively, picking up 10 and 8 wickets.

228: After the retirement of Younus Khan, Shoaib Malik is currently the most experienced Pakistani player in the one-day side. He has featured in 228 ODIs for Pakistan.

19: Number of runs Eoin Morgan needs to take his ODI tally in 2015 to 900 runs.

250: Average first innings score at Sheikh Zayed

215: Average second innings score at Sheikh Zayed

Teams

England Squad

Moeen Ali (All-Rounder), Reece Topley (Bowler), Jason Roy (Batsman), Jonny Bairstow (Batsman), Chris Woakes (All-Rounder), Jos Buttler (Wicket-Keeper), David Willey (Bowler), Alex Hales (Batsman), Liam Plunkett (Bowler), Adil Rashid (Bowler), Joe Root (Batsman), Sam Billings (Batsman), James Taylor (Batsman), Eoin Morgan (Captain, Batsman), Chris Jordan (All-Rounder)

Pakistan Squad

Ahmed Shehzad (Batsman), Zafar Gohar (All-Rounder), Azhar Ali (Captain, Batsman), Mohammad Hafeez (All-Rounder), Mohammad Irfan (Bowler), Anwar Ali (Batsman), Younis Khan (Batsman), Sarfraz Ahmed (Wicket-Keeper), Yasir Shah (Bowler), Babar Azam (Batsman), Wahab Riaz (Bowler), Rahat Ali (Bowler), Aamer Yamin (Bowler), Mohammad Rizwan (Batsman), Shoaib Malik (All-Rounder), Bilal Asif (All-Rounder)

Match starts at (4:30 pm IST) viewers can watch the Live Streaming at Cricketgatway.com

Get every cricket updates! Follow Us:

googletelegraminstagramwhatsappyoutubethreadstwitter

Download Our App

For a better experience: Download the CricTracker app from the IOS and Google Play Store