RAWALPINDI – Green Shirts found themselves in trouble against England in second ODI of the ongoing tri-series at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Tuesday, losing five wickets for 134 runs after 29 overs as the visitors tightened their grip on the contest.
England made early inroads into Pakistan’s batting line-up, dismissing several key players and leaving the hosts struggling to build a competitive total. Pakistan’s innings suffered setback when Fakhar Zaman was dismissed without scoring, while Saim Ayub managed only eight runs.
Star batter Babar Azam made 34 before losing his wicket, while Salman Ali Agha departed after scoring 16. With half the side back in the pavilion, Pakistan’s hopes of a strong recovery rested on the remaining batters, including Hasan Nawaz and Arafat Minhas. The team faced the difficult task of rebuilding the innings while increasing the scoring rate without risking further wickets.
Pakistan were scoring at approximately 4.7 runs per over at the time, leaving them under pressure to accelerate during the remaining overs. England’s live win predictor put their chances of victory at 79%, reflecting their advantage following Pakistan’s batting collapse.
Pakistan make changes after Sri Lanka Victory
Pakistan entered the match after defeating Sri Lanka in their opening fixture of the ODI tri-series. Shaheen Afridi captained the side, with Saad Baig named wicketkeeper as the hosts sought another win to strengthen their position in the tournament.
Pakistan
Saim Ayub, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Saad Baig (wicketkeeper), Hasan Nawaz, Salman Ali Agha, Arafat Minhas, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi (captain), Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah.
England, meanwhile, were aiming to open their campaign with a victory and capitalise on their recent success against Pakistan.
England
Ben Duckett, Tom Banton, Joe Root, Harry Brook (captain), Jordan Cox (wicketkeeper), Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Gus Atkinson, Adil Rashid and Sonny Baker.
England have enjoyed the upper hand in their ODI rivalry with Pakistan, winning 57 of their 92 meetings. Pakistan have registered 32 victories, while three matches ended without a result. English side have also won their last four ODI encounters against Pakistan, with victories in Cardiff, Lord’s, Birmingham and Kolkata between 2021 and 2023.
Pakistan were therefore looking to break their losing streak against England while maintaining the momentum gained from their opening victory over Sri Lanka.
England, who had won four of their previous five matches, were seeking to continue their strong run and make a winning start to their tri-series campaign.
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