Tag: Pakistan vs England

Opening batter Zak Crawley and left-arm spinner Jack Leach are likely to make a comeback for England for their upcoming Test series against Pakistan.

England will tour Pakistan for a three-match Test series, scheduled to run from October 7 to 24 with matches scheduled in Multan, Karachi and Rawalpindi respectively.

Meanwhile, experienced Somerset spinner Jack Leach, who has been out of the England Test side since 2018 is hopeful to make his long-awaited comeback, banking on his magnificent performance in the County Championship.

Leach was one of the most pivotal parts of the Ben Stokes-led England Test team but a series of injuries put him out of the international circuit.

Jack Leach acknowledged the competition from youngster Shoaib Bashir, who made notable inroads early into his Test career, picking up three five-wicket hauls in eight matches but the former remained optimistic that England may pick both the spinners for the Pakistan tour.

“I totally understand the reason why Bash has been selected,” Leach said. “I rate him really highly and think he is already a very good bowler with a lot of promise for the future. We have worked together a lot and I am very proud of him and want to see him flourish. But there is a tour to Pakistan coming up and if England need me, I am more than happy to go.”

“I would imagine they will take more than one spinner and I feel I am getting back to my best after almost a year with niggles that have taken some overcoming. You don’t always realise how hard it is to come back from injuries,” he said.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

“Long spells like I have had against Durham certainly help in that respect. It would be nice if both Shoaib and myself could make the Pakistan tour and there is no reason why that can’t happen. I don’t want to get my hopes up, but I am as determined as I ever have been to play for England,” he added.

On the other hand, opening batter Zak Crawley has been out of the action since the last Test of the three-match series against West Indies. He fractured his finger while attempting a catch.

Crawley is now in a race against time as the typical recovery period for a broken finger is approximately six to eight weeks, and the upcoming series against Pakistan was nine weeks away at the time of his injury.

READ: Ahmed Shehzad lambasts Pakistan over collapse against Bangladesh

England Test captain Ben Stokes has expressed hope to achieve full fitness and make a comeback to the team ahead of the upcoming series against Pakistan.

The star all-rounder is currently nursing a hamstring injury, which he suffered during the recently concluded The Hundred 2024.

He was playing for the Northern Superchargers in the tournament when he tore his left hamstring which kept him away from cricket for the rest of the summer season, including the ongoing series against Sri Lanka.

However, the 33-year-old all-rounder has resumed light batting training in the nets.

In a video uploaded by the England Cricket Board (ECB), Ben Stokes said that he was still in rehab and decided to stay with the team to be around team physio and doctors.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

“I’m all good, just slowly progressing,” said Ben Stokes. “Me batting is just scratching an itch. I’m just taking it easy, hitting some balls. It’s still very early days in the rehab period.”

“I want to get back as quick as I possibly can, so being around the medical team here with physio and doctors, I thought that was going to give myself the best chance of getting back sooner rather than later.”

England is scheduled to tour Pakistan for a three-match Test series, commencing on October 7 in Multan. The second Test will be played from October 15 to 19 in Karachi, while Rawalpindi will host the third Test match from October 24-28.

It is pertinent to mention here that the series between Pakistan and England will be part of the ICC Test Championship 2023-2025.

For the unversed, this will be England’s second tour of Pakistan in two years. They won the last Test series 3-0 in December 2022.

READ: Interim England captain Pope to follow Root’s footsteps

KARACHI: A security delegation of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) visited the National Bank Stadium here on Thursday to assess the arrangements for the upcoming England tour of Pakistan, later this year.

The security delegation visited different areas of the National Stadium and reviewed the security arrangements at the stadium and its surroundings.

The security delegation also reviewed the construction work of the stadium, whereas, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) officials briefed them about the ongoing work.

England is set to tour Pakistan for a three-match Test series in October this year. The tour begins with the First Test in Multan from October 7-11, before moving to Karachi for the Second Test from October 15-19. The Third Test will be in Rawalpindi from October 24-28.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

The three-match series forms part of the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25. It will be the second time England Men have played a Test series in Pakistan in under two years, with England having won the last series 3-0 in December 2022.

It is worth mentioning here that the three-match home Test series against England is part of the Pakistan men’s cricket team’s busy home international season 2024-25.

Besides England, Pakistan will host Bangladesh for a two-match Test series in August, followed by a three-match series against West Indies in January next year while they will play two away Tests against South Africa in December-January.

The nine Tests against Bangladesh, England, South Africa and the West Indies will be part of the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25.

SERIES SCHEDULE

7-11 October, 2024 – First Test, Multan

15-19 October, 2024 – Second Test, Karachi

24-28 October, 2024 – Third Test, Rawalpindi

READ: Babar Azam to bat at THIS number in first Bangladesh Test

England batter Zak Crawley is likely to miss the tour of Pakistan in October as he is required to undergo surgery for a broken finger.

England is scheduled to tour Pakistan for a three-match Test series, commencing on October 7 in Multan. The second Test will be played from October 15 to 19 in Karachi, while Rawalpindi will host the third Test match from October 24-28.

It is pertinent to mention here that the series between Pakistan and England will be part of the ICC Test Championship 2023-2025.

For the unversed, this will be England’s second tour of Pakistan in two years. They won the last Test series 3-0 in December 2022.

Prior to the tour of Pakistan, England will play three Tests against Sri Lanka later this month and Zak Crawley is expected to miss the series owing to his broken finger.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

The top-order batter suffered the injury while attempting a catch, during the recent Test match against West Indies, which ruled him out from ongoing The Hundred.

Crawley is now in a race against time as the typical recovery period for a broken finger is approximately six to eight weeks, and the upcoming series against Pakistan is just nine weeks away.

 

The 26-year-old cricketer boasts an impressive record against Pakistan in Test cricket, amassing 555 runs in eight innings at an outstanding average of 69.37. Notably, his career-best score of 267 was also achieved against Pakistan in 2020.

It is worth mentioning here that the three-match home Test series against England is part of the Pakistan men’s cricket team’s busy home international season 2024-25.

Besides England, Pakistan will host Bangladesh for a two-match Test series in August, followed by a three-match series against West Indies in January next year while they will play two away Tests against South Africa in December-January.

READ: Key Test players likely to play for Pakistan Shaheens against Bangladesh A

The Pakistan Cricket Board today announced the full match schedule for the Pakistan Men’s Test Series against England in October 2024.

The tour begins with the First Test in Multan from October 7-11, before moving to Karachi for the Second Test from October 15-19. The Third Test will be in Rawalpindi from October 24-28.

The three-match series forms part of the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25. It will be the second time England Men have played Test series in Pakistan in under two years, with England having won the last series 3-0 in December 2022.

Richard Gould, ECB Chief Executive Officer, said: “We’re really excited to be returning to Pakistan for this three-match Men’s Test tour in October.

“Our last Men’s Test tour of Pakistan produced some memorable matches and I’m sure fans can look forward to more exciting cricket across this forthcoming series.”

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

It is worth mentioning here that the three-match home Test series against England is part of the Pakistan men’s cricket team’s busy home international season 2024-25.

Besides England, Pakistan will host Bangladesh for a two-match Test series in August, followed by a three-match series against West Indies in January next year while they will play two away Tests against South Africa in December-January.

The nine Tests against Bangladesh, England, South Africa and the West Indies will be part of the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25. To date, Pakistan has played five Tests in two series against Sri Lanka and Australia, winning two and losing three.

This has placed them in fifth position on the points table with 22 points. India leads the table with 74 points after three series, followed by Australia (90 points from four series), New Zealand (36 points from three series), and Sri Lanka (24 points from two series).

With each of the top nine Test-playing nations scheduled to play six series (three home and three away) in the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 cycle, strong performances in the upcoming four series could put Pakistan in contention for a place in the final, scheduled for Lord’s in June 2025.

SERIES SCHEDULE

7-11 October, 2024 – First Test, Multan

15-19 October, 2024 – Second Test, Karachi

24-28 October, 2024 – Third Test, Rawalpindi

READ: Pakistan to play ODI tri-series amid home international season 2024-25

Veteran all-rounder Shoaib Malik came out in support of the Pakistan Men’s cricket team after their 2-0 series defeat against England just ahead of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.

Taking to X, formerly Twitter, Malik termed the England series a tough one but highlighted how the national team dealt with similar situations in the past.

“Tough series! Remember: we’ve been in tough spots before & came out stronger,” Shoaib wrote.

He then offered a piece of advice to Pakistan’s white-ball captain Babar Azam and urged him to bat at No.3, coining the right-handed batter the “best option” to rotate the strike in the middle overs.

“IMO [In my opinion] Babar should bat at no 03! We need someone in the middle overs to rotate strike, you are our best option, with your guidance our middle order will do a lot better,” Malik added.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

The former captain also threw his weight behind all-rounder Shadab Khan and young wicketkeeper batter Azam Khan, who have been struggling to find the rhythm.

“Azam and Shadab, you two are vital for our team, don’t lose confidence, play with heart, you are match winners. Going into the World Cup, keep your morale high, we’ve got this,” he concluded.

Notably, Shoaib Malik’s statement came minutes after Pakistan succumbed to a 2-0 series defeat against England as they suffered a seven-wicket defeat against England in the fourth T20I at Kennington Oval, London.

The four-match series against England was Pakistan’s final opportunity to gear up for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 as the 2009 champions missed the warm-up matches for this year’s mega event.

Former champions Pakistan will start their T20 World Cup 2024 campaign against the co-host United States of America (USA) on June 6 before taking on arch-rivals India in a blockbuster clash on June 9 in New York.

READ: Babar insists Pakistan ‘on track’ despite England series debacle

LONDON: Pakistan’s white-ball captain Babar Azam on Thursday, asserted that the national team is on track despite succumbing to a 2-0 series defeat against England.

Babar, while addressing the post-match press conference here after Pakistan’s seven-wicket defeat against England in the fourth T20I, reflected on the national team’s journey since the Asia Cup 2023 and reiterated that the team could not click.

“We are on track. But, as a team, we are not being able to click. When things change, you need some time to get back on track.

“[We have] a different support staff so we need some time to communicate with them.

“We are used to playing under different managements and we are performing as an individual but not as a team. I want us to perform as a team.”

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Babar Azam also termed the series defeat against England “disappointing” but remained confident that the team would perform well in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.

“It is disappointing to lose the series,” Babar said.

“We needed to win the series to go into the T20 World Cup with high spirits. The World Cup is a completely different game; we will deliver better results in it,” he added.

In the fourth T20I against England, Pakistan had a decent start to their innings as the returning opening pair of Babar and Mohammad Rizwan added 59 runs for the first wicket before the captain perished on the final delivery of the batting powerplay.

Despite a good start, the touring side’s middle-order failed to continue the momentum and crumbled against a disciplined England bowling attack.

“Undoubtedly, the batsmen were not responsible in the middle overs and lost wickets. Due to the successive fall of wickets, we couldn’t achieve a big score,” Babar admitted.

“The bowlers also didn’t bowl well and conceded too many runs,” Babar Azam added.

READ: West Indies thump Australia in T20 World Cup warm-up run-fest

LONDON: Pakistan captain Babar Azam and wicketkeeper batter Mohammad Rizwan on Thursday, became the most successful pair in the history of T20 cricket.

Babar and Rizwan, who are considered one of the greatest pairs of the format, became the first to score 24 50-plus scores in the shorter format, 10 out of which were converted into century partnerships.

The fourth T20I between Pakistan and England marked the return of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan as the opening pair.

The decorated opening pair did justice to their legacy and provided Pakistan with a solid start with a brisk 59-run partnership.

Their opening partnership against England saw them surpass the likes of Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli, who had 23 fifty-plus scores for the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).

Babar and Rizwan now have 3,227 runs as a pair in T20s and are only behind Kohli and AB de Villiers, who scored 3,175 runs as a duo for the RCB.

Earlier, Pakistan captain Babar Azam became only the second batter to complete 4000 runs in T20Is.

Babar achieved the landmark in the fourth T20I against England in the aforementioned fixture. He joined India’s batting star Virat Kohli on the elusive list, who has 4,037 runs in the shortest international format.

The right-handed batter scored a blistering 36 off 22 with the help of five fours and a six.

Most runs in T20Is

Virat Kohli- 4,037
Babar Azam – 4,023
Rohit Sharma – 3,974
Paul Stirling – 3,589

Furthermore, Babar also became the first captain to score 2,500 runs in the format.

READ: Babar Azam claims multiple records in T20 Internationals

LONDON: A combined bowling and batting effort powered England to outclass Pakistan by seven wickets in the fourth T20I to win the four-match series 2-0.

Set to chase 158, England comfortably chased down the total for the loss of just three wickets and 27 balls to spare.

Openers Phil Salt and Jos Buttler gave England a flying start to the pursuit against Pakistan as they raced the home side to 78/0 in the batting powerplay.

Returning pacer Haris Rauf then provided a much-needed breakthrough to Pakistan in the seventh when he got Salt caught at deep midwicket.

Salt struck six fours and two sixes on his way to a 25-ball 45.

Haris then struck again in his next over as he got Buttler caught behind. The England captain scored 39 off 20 deliveries, hitting seven fours and a six.

Will Jacks then knitted a brief partnership with Jonny Bairstow, adding 11 runs for the third wicket before Haris Rauf struck again and removed the former, who scored 20 off 18 deliveries.

Jacks’ dismissal had brought England down to 112/3 in 11 overs but Bairstow joined forces with Harry Brook, recording an unbeaten 46-run partnership to take the hosts over the line.

Bairstow scored an unbeaten 28 off 16 deliveries while Brooks made 17 not out.

For Pakistan, Haris Rauf picked three wickets while the rest went wicketless.

Put into bat first, Pakistan could only register 157 runs on the board before being bundled out on the penultimate delivery of the innings.

With young left-handed opener Saim Ayub dropped, Pakistan captain Babar Azam and wicketkeeper batter Mohammad Rizwan opened the innings for the touring side.

The decorated opening pair provided a solid start to Pakistan, adding 59 runs for the first wicket before Babar fell victim to Jofra Archer on the final delivery of the batting powerplay.

Babar smashed five fours and a six on his way to a 22-ball 36.

Rizwan was quick to follow as he was cleaned up by Adil Rashid in the next over. He scored 23 off 16 deliveries with the help of three boundaries.

Coming as Saim Ayub’s replacement, Usman Khan then put together a brief partnership with Fakhar Zaman, who fell in the ninth over after scoring a run-a-ball nine.

Pakistan then lost two more wickets in quick succession as Shadab Khan and Azam Khan both perished for ducks.

The touring side was 91/5 in 10.4 overs when the on-field umpires decided to stop the proceedings and the covers were brought on.

The action soon resumed and Usman stretched his seventh-wicket partnership with Iftikhar Ahmed.

The duo added 46 runs before Usman was dismissed by Liam Livingstone in the 15th over.

He remained the top-scorer for Pakistan with a brisk 38 off just 21 balls, hitting three fours and two sixes in the process.

Livingstone struck again in the next over as he bamboozled Shaheen Shah Afridi (0), bringing Pakistan down to 126/7 in 14.3 overs.

Iftikhar Ahmed and Naseem Shah then added 19 runs for the eighth wicket before the former fell on the final delivery of the 18th over with 145 runs on the board.

The all-rounder played a scratchy 21-run knock from 18 deliveries.

Naseem, on the other hand, carried his bat till the penultimate over and walked back after scoring 16.

Adil Rashid, Livingstone and Mark Wood led the bowling charge for England with two wickets each while Moeen Ali, Chris Jordan and Jofra Archer chipped in with a wicket apiece.

It is worth mentioning here that the four-match T20I series between Pakistan and England was the final opportunity for both sides to gear up for the T20 World Cup 2024 as the previous edition’s finalists will skip the warm-up matches for this year’s mega event.

READ: Babar Azam claims multiple records in T20 Internationals

LONDON: Pakistan captain Babar Azam on Thursday, became only the second batter to complete 4000 runs in T20Is.

Babar achieved the landmark in the fourth T20I against England when he scored his 13th run. He joined India’s batting star Virat Kohli on the elusive list, who has 4,037 runs in the shortest international format.

The right-handed batter scored a blistering 36 off 22 with the help of five fours and a six.

Most runs in T20Is

Virat Kohli- 4,037
Babar Azam – 4,023
Rohit Sharma – 3,974
Paul Stirling – 3,589

During the ongoing T20I against England, Babar Azam also became the first captain to score 2,500 runs in the format.

Earlier, England captain Jos Buttler won the coin toss and put Pakistan into bat first.

With young left-handed opener Saim Ayub dropped, Pakistan captain Babar Azam and wicketkeeper batter Mohammad Rizwan opened the innings for the touring side.

The decorated opening pair provided a solid start to Pakistan, adding 59 runs for the first wicket before Babar fell victim to Jofra Archer on the final delivery of the batting powerplay.

Babar smashed five fours and a six on his way to a 22-ball 36.

Rizwan was quick to follow as he was cleaned up by Adil Rashid in the next over. He scored 23 off 16 deliveries with the help of three boundaries.

Coming as Saim Ayub’s replacement, Usman Khan then put together a brief partnership with Fakhar Zaman, who fell in the ninth over after scoring a run-a-ball nine.

Pakistan then lost two more wickets in quick succession as Shadab Khan and Azam Khan both perished for ducks.

The touring side was 91/5 in 10.4 overs when the on-field umpires decided to stop the proceedings and the covers were brought on.

Notably, the first and third T20I of the ongoing four-match series between Pakistan and England were also washed due to rain.

England lead the four-match series 1-0 as Jos Buttler and bowlers led them to a convincing 23-run victory in the second T20I.

The ongoing four-match T20I series between Pakistan and England, scheduled to run from May 22 to 30, is a final opportunity for both sides to gear up for the T20 World Cup 2024 as the previous edition’s finalists will skip the warm-up matches for this year’s mega event.

PLAYING XIs

England: Phil Salt, Jos Buttler (c), Will Jacks, Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Moeen Ali, Liam Livingstone, Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood.

Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan, Babar Azam (c), Usman Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Shadab Khan, Azam Khan (wk), Iftikhar Ahmed, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Amir, Naseem Shah.

READ: Saim Ayub dropped as Babar-Rizwan opening pair returns