England v Pakistan | 3rd T20I | Old Trafford | 20th July, 2021 | Pre-match Thread

[MenInG]

Seems like a humiliating defeat in the 2nd T20I so what changes must Pakistan make to win the series?

 

[marlonbrowndo]

If they still don’t drop Haris then I don’t even know

 

[Shoaibbtt]

Haris Rauf out, M. Wasim Jr in

Azam Khan out, Hassan Ali in (subject to fitness)

 

[marlonbrowndo]

Just because we fluked a win after batting first, some of our clueless fans and ex cricketers are crying and blaming our decision to bowl first in the 2nd T20.

By all means. Bat first in the 3rd game. No matter what we score, England will chase it against this bowling lineup. And then I’d like to see the look on these peoples’ faces.

 

[MenInG]

Shadab Khan speaking to the press:

"Unfortunately we could not perform in the way we played in the previous game; We feel that we gave away 30 runs more than we should have but we must give credit to the number one side who used the home conditions to their advantage, which is something we lacked"

"Our batting order was fine today, and our idea is to put players in positions where they are performing the best; Our middle order made some mistakes but we will look to overcome these problems in the series decider"

"We have been chasing well in the previous T20s that we have played and our decision today was also based upon the strength of the opposition as well"

"Moeen Ali was a part-time spinner who bowled well for England - Similarly, we had Mohammad Hafeez but we did not feel that the situation was there for him to bowl today; I feel that our spinners bowled well during the middle overs; I feel that we struggled due to those 30 runs we gave away and the result could have been different if we had restricted them to 170"

"Like Babar Azam said, conditions changed during the day due to the sunshine which has been there for last 2-3 days; The ball was starting to grip in my last over; At that point, we realized that the ball was starting to grip more; We saw that in the second innings that slower balls and deliveries by the spinners were all starting to grip, so I feel conditions did change when we batted and England bowlers used that to their advantage"

 

[Titan24]

Hassan in for Rauf if fit otherwise should debut Wasim Jr.

Nawaz/ Qadir in for Azam as they clearly sont trust Hafeez as sixth bowler. Azam is a young guy, doesn’t deserve to get dropped after two matches but I would have played a sixth bowler even in the first match rather than debuting him then.

Babar (C)
Rizwan (WK)
Maqsood
Fakhar
Hafeez
Imad
Shadab
Hassan Ali/ Wasim Jr
Nawaz/ Usman Qadir
Hasnian
Shaheen

 

[SangasCoverDrive]

Pakistan should bat first. That’s the only way they can win because they cannot chase even 150

 

[Titan24]

"Like Babar Azam said, conditions changed during the day due to the sunshine which has been there for last 2-3 days; The ball was starting to grip in my last over; At that point, we realized that the ball was starting to grip more; We saw that in the second innings that slower balls and deliveries by the spinners were all starting to grip, so I feel conditions did change when we batted and England bowlers used that to their advantage"

Agreed with them here. There was evidently more spin and grip in the wicket than first innings. However, still not an excuse for such poor adaptation.

 

[sweep_shot]

It can go either way.

It should be a good game.

 

[YousafTheBeast]

Changes? Have we made any changes on this tour?

Sharjeel Khan
Babar Azam
Mohammad Rizwan
Mohammad Hafeez
Fakhar Zaman
Sohaib Maqsood
Hassan Ali
Mohammad Wasim
Imad Wasim
Arshad Iqbal
Usman Qadir

 

[Prince of Pakistan]

We're just not good enough to perform consistently against the top 4 teams.

At the least give Sharjeel a go. He might be a solution @ 3 instead of tulla Maqsood.

 

[Ahmed216]

We might be the only team which doesn't rotate its players in this format. Expect no changes from Misbah and Babar as they are perennially gripped by the fear of losing.

My team for last game

Rizwan
Sharjeel
Babar
Hafeez
Fakhar
Imad
Shadab
Hassan
Wasim
Qadir
Shaheen

Throw in a couple of unknown commodities in wasim and qadir for the decider

 

[gazza619]

Haris Rauf out, M. Wasim Jr in

Azam Khan out, Hassan Ali in (subject to fitness)

Thank you! I would play Qadir ahead of M Wasim though. It is a series decider and we cant play a debutant.

 

[PakHammer]

Misbah being Misbah will make one change, AZAM Khan (yes I put capitals due to his weight) out and Faheem in. I don't think Hassan Ali is fit for the rest of this tour.

 

[fight_club]

Misbah being Misbah will make one change, AZAM Khan (yes I put capitals due to his weight) out and Faheem in. I don't think Hassan Ali is fit for the rest of this tour.

I would rather have nawaz

 

[Saj]

"Like Babar Azam said, conditions changed during the day due to the sunshine which has been there for last 2-3 days; The ball was starting to grip in my last over; At that point, we realized that the ball was starting to grip more; We saw that in the second innings that slower balls and deliveries by the spinners were all starting to grip, so I feel conditions did change when we batted and England bowlers used that to their advantage"

So why bowl first then?

 

[fight_club]

Two changes are must , Rauf and Azam goes out. I would even swap Nawaz/Qadir for Imad

 

[hitthestump]

Doesn't appear that neither Rauf nor Hasnain are suitable for the 3rd seamer role. It's already feeling like both have been around forever without ever cementing their place.

It's not entirely their fault of course. Neither have played any domestic and both have been Waqar'd.

We ought to pick a bowler who has actually put in work at FC level/hasn't had contact with Waqar. Mohammad Jnr should be given a try.

 

[fight_club]

Hasnain has been very impressive this series and was the best bowler in the 1st T20

 

[Ami]

Haris Rauf out, M. Wasim Jr in

Azam Khan out, Hassan Ali in (subject to fitness)

haha...whose fitness? Hasan or Azam?

 

[mon858]

Nawaz in for Azam
Hassan in for Haris
Wasim Jr in for Husnain

It's not world cup final and we have to try out some of bench too. Also Nawaz is good middle overs bowler and between him and Hasan Ali and wasim Jr we make up for replacing azam. Also this makes our fielding much better which is important in t20. Azam, Haris, and Husnain are among the poorer fielders of the side.

Ideally would have liked to give Qadir a go too, but Shadab is undroppable in current setup due to being vice captain, and also not doing too bad plus his fielding is best in team.

 

[Shoaibbtt]

haha...whose fitness? Hasan or Azam?

Hassan Ali of course cause he’s injured.

 

[Manzy2599]

Just because we fluked a win after batting first, some of our clueless fans and ex cricketers are crying and blaming our decision to bowl first in the 2nd T20.

By all means. Bat first in the 3rd game. No matter what we score, England will chase it against this bowling lineup. And then I’d like to see the look on these peoples’ faces.

200 plus is tricky to chase no matter who’s chasing cause there’s pressure from the start of 10 runs per over. Even the best sides will make mistakes and get out while hitting like England did in the 1st game. If Pakistan can make 200 minimum batting first it’ll be a good game and i would back their chances.

 

[PakPremi]

I would have Nawaz in place of Rauf, and Sarfraz in place of useless Azam. If Azam is in the team to hit couple of boundaries then Sarfraz can do that with added bonus he plays spinners well, but later both Azam and Sarfraz should be removed from the squad.
Hasnain deserves lots more chances he was good in the first game and in the second game he only really had one very bad over.
.

 

[Energy]

They may play Qadir now in place of Rauf/Hasnain only to then find out it is not a gripping wicket at all. England will outfox us again.

We will also bat first on a seaming wicket.

 

[Canistani Hero]

Haris Rauf and Shadab Khan out, Hasan Ali and Usman Qadir in.

 

[Titan24]

They may play Qadir now in place of Rauf/Hasnain only to then find out it is not a gripping wicket at all. England will outfox us again.

We will also bat first on a seaming wicket.

I would be really surprised if they go with just 2 pacers in the match. I think to add Qadir they will have to sit out a batsman and will need to add Hassan or Wasim Jr to keep the batting depth till no 8.

 

[ataullah]

Haris Rauf out Hasan Ali in
Imad out usman qadir in
Azam khan out Sharjeel Khan in

Babar
Sharjeel
Rizwan
Hafeez
Fakhar
Maqsood
Shadab
Hasan
Usman
Shaheen
Hasnain

 

[shamaan]

Changes? Have we made any changes on this tour?����������

Sharjeel Khan
Babar Azam
Mohammad Rizwan
Mohammad Hafeez
Fakhar Zaman
Sohaib Maqsood
Hassan Ali
Mohammad Wasim
Imad Wasim
Arshad Iqbal
Usman Qadir

I would not play sharjeel only because if he fails he proberly have less opportunity against West Indies.

 

[shamaan]

Haris Rauf and Shadab Khan out, Hasan Ali and Usman Qadir in.

What did shadab do wrong he got some runs to.

 

[shamaan]

My xi I would drop azam and bring in Hassan Ali also I would pick qadir instead of Rauf.sharjeel shouldn't play because if he fails he may not play against West indies.
Rizwan
Babar
Fakhar
Hafeez
Maqsood
Imad
Shadab
Hassan Ali
Qadir
Shaheen
Husnain

 

[globalcitizen]

Liam Livingstone is danger man for Pakistan. if he gets going no total is out of reach

 

[Ertugrul_Bey]

My team for last game

Rizwan
Sharjeel
Babar
Hafeez
Fakhar
Imad
Shadab
Hassan
Wasim
Qadir
Shaheen

 

[Asif321]

Fakhar in middle order is the worst decision . If you play him then do as opener otherwise don't bother . One of rizwan or babar has to play at 3. Fakhar or Sharjeel must open

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

Team management has scrambled minds.

No one can predict what they will do on the day. Even they don't know.

I do hope they bring in Usman Qadir for Haris for starters though, make Hafeez bowl a few overs (what rotation is he on by the way - banned or not?) and have a plan B when things are not going their way.

 

[YousafTheBeast]

The words every Pakistani cricket fan fears ‘unchanged team today’.

 

[MenInG]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Hassan Ali has been declared fit to play by the PCB medical panel and will be available for selection for today's T20I series decider against England at Old Trafford<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ENGvPAK?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ENGvPAK</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cricket?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Cricket</a></p>— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) <a href="https://twitter.com/Saj_PakPassion/status/1417406400087613454?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[Snatch]

English should win easily if they play anywhere near their potential. I mean in a combined team, how many Pakistani batsmen would make a Pak/Eng T20 XI?

 

[Raja Ishtiaq]

As much as I dislike Azam Khan you cant drop him so soon. I dont even think you can drop for our next T20 series.

 

[hitthestump]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Hassan Ali has been declared fit to play by the PCB medical panel and will be available for selection for today's T20I series decider against England at Old Trafford<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ENGvPAK?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ENGvPAK</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cricket?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Cricket</a></p>— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) <a href="https://twitter.com/Saj_PakPassion/status/1417406400087613454?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Good news.

Hopefully our two rock throwers make way for Hasan and Qadir respectively

 

[UzmanBeast]

One thing I find incredibly confusing with this management is the role of Mohammad Hafeez. Is he there as a batsman, or are you ever going to consider using him to bowl a few overs here and there?

The part I don't understand is that when someone like Moeen Ali came to the crease, that was the perfect opportunity to bring on Hafeez for just one over. There was some turn but it's more about the angle because Hafeez drifts the ball towards the pads of a left-hander. It would have done two things: it would have saved Babar from bowling Haris for another over, and it would have also been a different challenge for England as they probably did not expect him to bowl.

Yes there are issues with his action, but the point I'm trying to make is that spinners did well. Imad did well, Shadab did well, so the thought process should have been to trust Hafeez to deliver an over.

Had Hafeez bowled two overs, we wouldn't have even had to bowl Rauf for more than two. You need players like Malik and Hafeez because when one of your pacers goes missing and gets absolutely hammered, they can give you a bit of breathing room and help you change things up.

This Old Trafford wicket seems dry from my understanding, so pacers should look to utilize cutters, which is something Hasan Ali can do well. We need to make sure that we utilize Hafeez as a bowler in certain situations, because it can help change the outcome of a match. Whenever Haris came on to bowl, he leaked runs and helped new batsmen settle. Had Hafeez bowled one or two overs, I could easily see us restricting England to 185.

 

[Barragan]

I'd go with this team:

1. Sharjeel
2. Rizwan
3. Babar
4. Zaman
5. hafeez
6. Maqsood
7. Imad
8. Faheem
9. Shadab
10. Hasan
11. Shaheen

Faheem is a good T20 bowler and gets the job done with the ball, but he shouldn't bowl at the death and bowl him out before the 16th over.

Leave the 4 overs of the death to Hassan and Shaheen.

If Sharjeel clicks at the top then great and if not, then you basically get Babar and Rizwan opening.

 

[Ashraful_Rox]

England will win with Butler back and it seems like all Asian British are performing so will be an easy match.

 

[ritzy_123]

1) Fakhar Zaman
2) Muhammad Rizwan
3) Babar Azam
4) Sohaib Maqsood
5) Muhammad Hafeez
6) Azam Khan
7) Imad Wasim
8) Shadab Khan
9) Hasan Ali
10) Shaheen Shah Afridi
11) Usman Qadir/Muhammad Wasim Jnr

It's a really good partnership between Rizwan and Babar but we've to try today to see if this works as well

 

[TeamPak95]

The words every Pakistani cricket fan fears ‘unchanged team today’.

I wouldn't be surprised at all if that were the case. Folks are saying to give debut to Wasim jr. In a series decider, I'll be shocked if that were to happen.

 

[Maher96]

Haris should be out but knowing this management they will take Hasnain out as he was smacked for 19 runs first and then Haris.

Batting won’t see any changes apart from may be Maqsood sitting out for sharjeel at most. Others will continue to get a run.

Rizwan and Babar will never be doubted as opnerers they have cemented it with good partnerships lately.

Trafford is a nightmare for spinners need off cutters and slow balls that light works otherwise it’s a belter.

200 is just par in England now.