England have had a World Cup campaign to forget, losing six of their first eight games in what was supposed to be the defence of their title.
They still need to finish in the top seven of the group stages to qualify for the Champions Trophy so this closing fixture against Pakistan is no dead-rubber.
The Men in Green have more to play for with qualification for the knockout stages still in the balance, but they require a win here with a big net run rate to overtake New Zealand.
- Pakistan to win
- Dawid Malan top England runscorer
- Shaheen Afridi top Pakistan wicket-taker
Pakistan Boast Solid Winning Prospects
England’s dominant win over the Netherlands last time out was a rare bright spot in what has been a dismal campaign for the reigning champions and they will be hoping to end on a high when they take on Pakistan on Saturday.
Jos Buttler’s side have beaten only Bangladesh and the Dutch, however, and have struggled mightily against the bigger nations.
Pakistan are in with an outside chance of reaching the semi-finals and their record at the tournament outside of the top three is impressive.
The Men in Green have won four and lost one of their five matches against the teams that aren’t India, South Africa and Australia.
Their top order was impressive in their rain-affected win over New Zealand last time out and they are obviously more suited to these conditions than England.
A defeat to a dominant India team aside, Babar Azam’s men have managed to keep all of their games close and this should be another captivating watch.
However, England’s stuttering batting line-up have fallen short in all of their big tests so far at this tournament and can’t be trusted, so take Pakistan to win.
Malan Only Bright Spark For England
England’s batters have struggled throughout this tournament with the exception of Dawid Malan, who continues to impress despite having no help from his teammates.
The opener is averaging 46.62, comfortably better than any other England player, and he is fancied to be top run scorer again in this clash.
Malan has two half-centuries in his last two innings so is clearly in good form and only a century from Ben Stokes prevented him taking home top run scorer honours against the Netherlands as he fired 87 from 74 balls.
DAWID MALAN TOP ENGLAND RUN SCORER
Afridi Can Continue To Impress With The Ball
Shaheen Afridi had a rare off day against New Zealand last time out, recording figures of 0-90.
However, he is too good a bowler to have back-to-back bad games and is fancied to be Pakistan’s top wicket-taker.
Afridi has taken 16 wickets at this World Cup, claiming three or more wickets in three of his last five matches.
The 23-year-old’s pace could be a major issue for an out-of-sorts England and he should star once again.
SHAHEEN AFRIDI TOP PAKISTAN WICKET TAKER
