Key occasions
sixth over: Pakistan 40-2 (Babar 25, Haider 7) A run-out likelihood for England. Babar takes a fast single to mid-on and is in need of his floor when Curran’s throw whistles previous the stumps.
Haider helps a brief ball from Gleeson not far away for 4, then pulls straight into the square-leg umpire Aleem Dar. Fortunately it hit him on the fleshy a part of the thigh.
“Re: Brian Withington on Lord David of Gower (4th over),” begins Gareth Wilson, “not less than we’re spared KP saying one thing apparent then Saying. It. Once more. Slower.”
fifth over: Pakistan 32-2 (Babar 22, Haider 2) It took a short while, however Babar has acquired his eye in. He again cuts Topley fantastically to the fence, his third boundary in 4 balls, and steals a single off the final ball to maneuver to 22 from 16 balls.
4th over: Pakistan 26-2 (Babar 17, Haider 1) Babar will get his first boundary, flicking Willey delightfully by midwicket, and provides one other with a pull behind sq.. That’s far more Babartypical.
“Afternoon Rob,” says Brian Withington. “Who may presumably tire of David Gower demonstrating the nice artwork of proof by repeated assertion? How we now have missed his impressed commentary.”
WICKET! Pakistan 15-2 (Shan LBW b Willey 0)
Shan Masood goes for a duck. He missed a bread-and-butter work throughout the road at Willey and was given out LBW by Rashid Riaz. Shan reviewed, hoping it might need been excessive, however replays confirmed it was hitting the highest of leg stump. Pakistan lose a wicket and a evaluation.
third over: Pakistan 14-1 (Babar 6, Shan 0) Shan Masood is the brand new batter.
WICKET! Pakistan 14-1 (Haris c Rashid b Gleeson 7)
Mohammad Haris will get off the mark with a swagger, clouting the brand new bowler Richard Gleeson again over his head for six. However he falls later within the over, steering a brief ball straight to Rashid at quick third man. It was good bowling from Gleeson, who adopted Haris as he backed away.
2nd over: Pakistan 5-0 (Babar 4, Haris 0) There was a soupcon of swing for Topley, so David Willey – all the time harmful when the white ball strikes within the air – goes to share the brand new ball. Babar mistimes a few attacking strokes, which suggests the pitch may not be one of the best, and there are simply three runs from the over.
1st over: Pakistan 2-0 (Babar 1, Haris 0) Reece Topley begins the innings with a large, however he quickly finds his vary and ends the over with 5 successive dot balls to the debutant Mohammad Haris. Haris appears a bit nervouis, as you’d count on, and misses a really bold reverse lap.
Right here come the gamers. It’s a recent pitch right this moment, and there’s a brand new face – the 21-year-old debutant Mohammad Haris.
Group information
Each groups make two modifications. Shahnawaz Dahani and the debutant Mohammad Haris exchange Haris Rauf and Mohammad Rizwan, who’re rested.
England herald Reece Topley and Richard Gleeson for Mark Wooden and Chris Woakes. Nonetheless no signal of Jos Buttler, although it sounds prefer it’s only a precaution.
Pakistan Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Haris (wk), Shan Masood, Haider Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Asif Ali, Mohammad Nawaz, Shadab Khan, Aamer Jamal, Shahnawaz Dahani, Mohammad Wasim.
England Salt (wk), Hales, Malan, Duckett, Brook, Ali (c), Curran, Willey, Rashid, Gleeson, Topley.
England have received the toss (once more) and can bowl first (once more)
“We have now to chase nicely and win the sport,” says their captain Moeen Ali. Babar Azam says he would have made the identical determination.
Our previous good friend Andy Bull has written some cracking stuff all through this tour. Right here he’s on the sequence we’d all like to see.
Preamble
Generally, you don’t know what you’ve acquired until you’ve acquired it. Issues we are able to’t foresee enrich our lives in methods we are able to’t think about: real love, The Sopranos, reminiscence foam. Who knew, for instance, that when you attain a sure age, the hitherto repellent IKEA catalogue accommodates nothing however dopamine? And who had any thought {that a} seven-match white-ball sequence, which appears like a uniquely sadistic type of overkill, could possibly be so goshdarn life-affirming?
In ODIs, England have been concerned in some mind-numbing, spirit-crushing seven-match sequence. The record of outcomes isn’t fairly: 1-6, 1-4*, 4-3, 1-6, 1-6, 2-5. A few of us are nonetheless in remedy over the 6-1 defeat in South Africa in 1995-96, which presaged a determined World Cup marketing campaign. However this, their first seven-match T20 sequence, has been an nearly ceaseless pleasure on and off the sector. Pakistan lead 3-2 after thrilling victories within the fourth and fifth video games, and a win right this moment would give them the sequence with a recreation to spare.
There’s an even bigger image – the World Cup begins on 16 October – however England may do with out having their morale punctured by one other defeat. Whereas there are mitigating circumstances, their type has an end-of-an-era whiff about it. From 2019-21, England’s bilateral T20 sequence document was W7 D1 L1. In the event that they lose right this moment, their document for 2022 can be W0 D0 L4. The final time they misplaced 4 T20 sequence in a row was – pop quiz, hotshot – by no means.
The match begins at 3.30pm in London, 7.30pm in Karachi.
* Don’t you get clever with me, there was a tie and a no-result