England vs Pakistan – 2nd T20 International Preview & Prediction
THE FACTS
When is England vs Pakistan taking place? Sunday, July 18th, 2021 – 14:30 (UK)
Where is England vs Pakistan taking place? Emerald Headingley, Leeds
What is the expected weather for England vs Pakistan? 25-26c, with sunshine and a gentle breeze
What channel is England vs Pakistan on? The match will be televised live on Sky Sports
Where can I stream England vs Pakistan? The match can be streamed live via SkyGo
LAST MEETING
Pakistan beat England by 31 runs
THE TEAM NEWS
ENGLAND
- England suffered their first white-ball defeat of the summer last time out, after being beaten by 31 runs at the hands of Pakistan, with their bowling having been smashed to all parts by the tourists.
- However, the defeat was not without a huge positive, as all-rounder Liam Livingstone scored a special 103 from only 43 deliveries with six fours and nine sixes, the fastest hundred ever scored by an English batter in T20i cricket, although the innings was in vain with England chasing a mammoth target.
- The hosts made the decision to rest key bowlers such as Chris Jordan, who does such a good job at the death, and Adil Rashid, whose spin-bowling regularly picks up key wickets and both should feature in this second T20i, alongside wicketkeeper batter Jos Buttler at the top of the order.
PAKISTAN
- After a dismal showing in the three-match ODI series, Pakistan finally showed what they are capable of with the white ball in the first T20i, smashing 232/6 off their 20 overs before bowling England out for 201.
- Following his incredible 158 in the final ODI, captain Babar Azam was in the runs once again after scoring a hard hitting 85, whilst fellow opener Mohammad Rizwan managed 63 as the wicketkeeper batter shared a partnership of 150 with his captain.
- The first T20i saw a debut for 22-year-old Azam Khan and after not getting a chance to bat, he is likely to retain his place in what could be an unchanged Pakistan side as they look to back up their triumph at Trent Bridge.
THE PREDICTION
Only a team like Pakistan could bounce back from such a demoralising ODI series performance by scoring 232 runs in 20 overs and securing a big victory to take the lead in this three-match T20 series. The inconsistency of Pakistan has always made them so difficult to predict, you simply don’t know what side of them will show up at any given time. However, England will be hurt following that loss at Trent Bridge as England’s decision to rest a number of key players came back to haunt them.
England will be expected to bounce back with a vengeance at Emerald Headingley assuming the likes of Rashid and Jordan are named in the team, which will hugely boost their bowling attack that was taken apart by the tourists in the first game. Pakistan meanwhile, do remain heavily reliant on their opening pair of Babar and Rizwan for runs and providing England ensure that neither of those two make a meaningful contribution with the bat as they each did in the first T20i, then ultimately the all-round quality of the hosts should ensure that Eoin Morgan’s side triumphs and levels up the series.
