England vs Pakistan 2nd ODI Prediction

ENG Team News

England chose not to risk Jason Roy’s fitness for the opening ODI, and may stick with James Vince for this second game after the rain denied him more time in the middle. The same is true of Joe Denly, who played ahead of Moeen Ali. 

ENG Key Players

Jofra Archer is the focus of all the pre-World Cup attention in this England squad as he looks to force his way into the final 15-man squad – which he is not currently a member of. Archer took 1-6 from four overs and consistently ramped the speed up in the brief bit of play permitted in the first ODI. 

England’s other wicket taker was Liam Plunkett, meanwhile, as he followed up his 4-35 against Ireland by having Babar Azam caught behind.

With the bat, Eoin Morgan comes into this series on the back of becoming the first England batsman to score 6,000 runs in ODIs. He and Joe Root both scored runs in the T20 against Pakistan, and both have shared some big ODI partnerships during England’s surge to the top of the ODI rankings.

Jonny Bairstow and Jos Buttler are both in the squad on the back of their good form at the IPL, meanwhile. Bairstow scored 445 runs in ten innings for Sunrisers Hyderabad, while Buttler hit 311 in eight for Rajasthan Royals – each with strike rates above 150.

ENG Team Form

While there was just enough time for Jofra Archer to make another point to the national selectors in the first game of this series, England were frustrated by the rain at the Oval as they gear up for the World Cup.

Though number one in the world, their last full series ended in a 2-2 draw with West Indies after a batting collapse in the last game, but England did win their most recently completed game, against Ireland.

In Malahide, Liam Plunkett took four wickets and Tom Curran three as Ireland were bowled out for 198, before Ben Foakes hit 68 not out and Curran was unbeaten on 47 to lead England to a four-wicket win.