3rd ODI: England beat Pakistan by three wickets

Last updated on: 14 July,2021 01:14 am

England win toss, opt to field against Pakistan

LONDON (Dunya News) - England defeated Pakistan by three wickets in the third and last ODI to complete a clean sweep in the three-match series at Edgbaston in Birmingham on Tuesday.

Playing first, Pakistan set 332 runs target for England. Azam smashed 158 runs off just 139 balls with the help of 14 fours and 4 sixes. Rizwan also contributed 74 runs off 58 balls which included 8 fours.

However, Pakistan lost the last 5 wickets for just 26 runs to pull back things in their favour as Brydon Carse took a maiden five-wicket haul while Saqib Mahmood also picked up 3 wickets.

Earlier, England won the toss and opted to field first against Pakistan.

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 the other hand, Babar Azam & Co. look to register a consolation victory after losing the ODI series badly.

In both the matches that Pakistan lost, their batting has been the major disappointment. Despite the consistent failures, the top-order is likely to remain unchanged. In order to deal with the middle-order problem, Pakistan have an option like Sarfaraz Ahmed, and he could replace Sohaib Maqsood in the playing XI.

Lewis Gregory s all-round Player of the Match-winning performance helped England register a comprehensive 52-run win and clinch the series in a rain-curtailed second ODI at Lord s.

Pakistan bowlers made early inroads and scalped Dawid Malan and Zac Crawley within the first five overs before fifties from Phil Salt and James Vince consolidated the innings. The visitors triggered a collapse in the middle overs as England went from 118/2 to 160/7. Playing in just their second ODIs, Gregory and Brydon Carse strung together a 69-run partnership to help the hosts put 247 runs on board in 47 overs. Hasan Ali was the star of the show for Pakistan as he registered his fourth ODI five-for.

Gregory and Saqib Mahmood got England off to a great start with the ball, reducing Pakistan to 38/3 in the first nine overs. Saud Shakeel found some support in Sohaib Maqsood and Shadab Khan but that wasn t enough to bail the tourists out of trouble. Hasan Ali scored a 17-ball 31 but the asking rate was too much for the Pakistan tail and they fell short by 52 runs.