 England would want to wrap the series when they meet Pakistan in the third ODI between the two sides at the Kennington Oval in London. England won
the previous two matches, the first one with relative ease and the second one
by holding their nerves in the last over. Pakistan may be down in the series
but they would want to see the positives. There has been a marked improvement
in their displays and they were much better in the last game.
Click for Live Score Card of England Vs Pakistan
Their batting has started clicking together as a team rather than relying on
individual contributions. The top four batsmen got good starts but couldn't
go till the end and the team has been helped by Kamran Akmal's return to form.
The wicket keeper has two fifties in two games and was terrific in the last
game, giving the team an explosive start.
However, the team is still bad on the field. Shahid Afridi was left
ruing the missed chances on the field and even warned that the players who drop
catches could even be dropped from the side if they continue this and if they
do not raise the standards on the field. Mohammed Irfan dropped Andrew Strauss
when he was on 23 and the England captain went on to score a century to guide
his side home.
He wonderfully orchestrated the chase with the help of Jonathan Trott,
who also has two half centuries to his name in the series. By scoring this hundred
Strauss also silenced the critics who were calling for him to be dropped from
the one day side. He has been in great form throughout this summer and will
now look forward to leading England in the World Cup next February.
Pakistan still have problems in bowling. They are still struggling to cope
with the loss of Mohammed Amir and Mohammed Asif to suspension. Umar
Gul has been a shadow of a bowler since his return from the injury during the
Test series. He was expensive in both the one dayers and will have to regain
his form once again. Mohammed Irfan has not lived up to his hype, and is finding
how tough international cricket can be. His action collapses when he comes to
the crease and this does not allow him to use his height to full effect. However,
Shoaib Akhtar has started bowling well once again and this bodes well
for the near future at least.
England will once again start as favorites but Pakistan are getting better every
game and will be tough to beat this time around.
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