England eye series clean sweep against Pakistan
Last updated on: 13 July,2021 04:27 pm
Skipper Ben Stokes has had a fabulous start to his captaincy stint.
BIRMINGHAM (Web Desk) – World Cup winners England, who have revealed their bench-strength by taking an unassailable 2-0 lead with a second-string side, will look to seal the three-ODI series against Pakistan on Tuesday.
As with all matches in this series, points are up for grabs for the ICC World Cup Super League.
However, Babar Azam and Co have ODI Super League points to play for. The Three Lions, on the other hand, have looked in great form despite not having quite a few of their key players for the series. The hosts will be now be looking to secure a whitewash with another win.
England will be keen to make it 3-0 and complete a clean sweep over Pakistan. All selected players have performed well in the series so far and they will come into the game very confident.
Skipper Ben Stokes has had a fabulous start to his captaincy stint. He has pretty much taken the right decisions at crucial junctures. The inexperienced team has backed up their captain’s plans of attack and will be keen to whitewash the Pakistan team.
Apart from John Simpson, everybody has shown up to their tasks. The 32-year-old might get another go considering England is a little weak on the wicket-keeping options. Testing the bench strength is the right way to go. However, none of the members of the playing XI deserve to be dropped.
Pakistan will be devastated with their performance. They came into the series high on confidence but they’ve been left completely flustered. Losing to a second-string side is always a big insult. The series has also put into perspective how brittle Pakistan’s batting order is.
If Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan fail to contribute, the team plunges into a downward spiral. Therefore, they might have to consider bringing in Agha Salman or Abdullah Shafique to strengthen the line-up.
The bowling was up to par for the most part of the second ODI. However, England’s lower order proved to be a thorn in the side. Hasan Ali, who picked up a fifer at Lord’s, will be their main man with the ball. Expect Pakistan to make a couple of changes going into the last game.