England will be up against Pakistan in Match 44 of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 on November 11 at Eden Gardens in Kolkata, India. The match commences at 2:00 PM IST. England’s defence of their World Cup triumph in 2019 has turned out to be pretty horrible, with the side registering only two wins in eight matches in India. Jos Buttler and his troops struggled to adapt to the conditions and as a result, were out of semi-final contention very early in the tournament.
They were also facing a major scare with respect to their ICC Champions Trophy 2025 qualification, as only the top eight teams in the ongoing tournament are going to make it to that tournament. However, a big win against the Netherlands puts them in a better position.
Batting first against the Dutch, Ben Stokes smashed his first World Cup century, which allowed his side to put up 333/9 in 50 overs. In response, Netherlands struggled to deal with the spin threat of England, with Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid picking three wickets each. They were bowled out for 179 as England won by 160 runs.
Pakistan, on the other hand, were dependent on Sri Lanka for a favour to reach the World Cup semi-finals. As it turns out, Sri Lanka didn’t hand them a favour and now, they have a near-impossible task in hand against the English. The 1992 champions must beat the English team by 287 runs, or with 284 balls remaining if they bat second.
The only hope for them would be to bat first and put up a big score. Their recent batting performance against New Zealand in Bengaluru was a great encouragement for the side, where they emerged victorious despite conceding 400 runs.
Pitch report
The average score by the team batting first in the last 10 matches at the venue is 286.
Padding up first is recommended at this stadium, with the team batting first winning 80 per cent of its matches.
Weather report
The temperature at Eden Gardens is predicted to be 31.15 degrees Celsius and 31 per cent humidity.
England vs Pakistan squads
England: Ben Stokes, Dawid Malan, Harry Brook, Joe Root, Chris Woakes, David Willey, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Jos Buttler (c & wk), Adil Rashid, Brydon Carse, Gus Atkinson, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood
Pakistan: Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam (c), Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Saud Shakeel, Agha Salman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Haris (wk), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Wasim, Shaheen Afridi, Usama Mir, Zaman Khan
ENG vs PAK Fantasy 11 Prediction: Top captain and vice-captain picks
Dawid Malan: England batter Dawid Malan has racked up 373 runs in eight matches this campaign at an average of 46.63 and a strike rate of 103.32. He has smashed two half-centuries and one century, alongside a highest score of 140.
Mohammad Rizwan: Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan has amassed 359 runs in eight matches and is the team’s top run-getter in this tournament. He strikes at a rate of 98.9 and averages 71.8. He also has one fifty and one century to his name.
Adil Rashid: The England bowler scalped 13 wickets in eight matches. Adil Rashid’s best spell for this season is 3/42 and he averages 27.53.
Shaheen Afridi: The bowler from Pakistan has taken 16 wickets in eight matches so far at an average of 25.56. Shaheen Afridi’s 5/54 is his finest bowling performance of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023.
ENG vs PAK Fantasy 11 team
Wicket-keepers: Mohammad Rizwan
Batters: Ben Stokes, Joe Root, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Asad Shafique
All-rounders: Chris Woakes, Iftikhar Ahmed
Bowlers: Adil Rashid, David Willey, Shaheen Afridi
Captain: Fakhar Zaman
Vice-captain: Adil Rashid
England vs Pakistan head-to-head record in ODI
England and Pakistan have battled against each other on 91 occasions in ODIs. While England have won 56 matches, their rivals have emerged victorious 32 times.
The last five ODI matches have seen England win four times and Pakistan once. The highest score in these five matches is 351 by England whereas the lowest has been 141 by Pakistan.
The team batting first has won 25 times and lost 18 times in 44 matches. Meanwhile, the chasing side has come out on top on 31 occasions and lost 14 times in 46 matches.
Prediction
England are expected to win the next contest as they have won four of the last five matches against Pakistan.
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