🏏 Cricket World Cup 2023: Match #44: England vs Pakistan🏏

🏏 Cricket World Cup 2023: Match #44: England vs Pakistan at Eden Gardens, Kolkata on 11/11/2023 at 2:00PM IST 🏏

Pakistan face near-impossible task against England to make World Cup semi-finals

Realistically, both teams will just want to finish their World Cup on a high, as they meet at Eden Gardens

So here we are: one last time in the group stages at Eden Gardens, and for both of these sides - almost certainly - one last time at this World Cup. As title defences go, it was an all-timer of a disaster for England, comparable not just with other cricketing fizzle-fests, but perhaps all sport: think France at the FIFA World Cup in 2002, or Lleyton Hewitt's first-round exit at Wimbledon the year later. England went nearly a month between their only two World Cup wins, with six defeats - many of them pastings - littering their campaign, one so poor it could yet knock them out of the 2025 Champions Trophy.

England's brand of cricket has been high-risk-high-reward for about eight years now, and having enjoyed so much white-ball success with it, the risks finally appeared to catch up this time. That style feels like it requires ultimate buy-in from players, and that requires confidence, which only comes from results.

Once the results began to turn awry - first a beatdown against New Zealand and then an upset against Afghanistan - things snowballed very quickly. Panic against South Africa, when they made three changes and unwisely chose to field first, was punished to the fullest. They would spend the next fortnight touring the country getting beaten by one side after another, before a relatively respectable showing against Netherlands secured them their second win. Team selection baffled, shot selection sometimes even more so.

Against Pakistan, though, they have the chance to sign off a wretched tournament on something resembling a high. Several of this England squad may not wear an ODI shirt again - certainly not in a World Cup - and it's perhaps fitting that the last side they play against before their likely break-up is Pakistan. This brand of England has sizzled more against Pakistan than any other side, winning 14 of their 18 completed ODIs since the 2015 World Cup, including a then-World record total of 444 at Trent Bridge. Here's a chance to play the old hits one last time.

Tag Credit: Sutapasima

There is no threat of rain in Kolkata on Saturday (November 11) or in the lead up to match, according to AccuWeather, which forecasts a sunny and clear day with temperature at a high of 32° C at the start of play that will reduce to 26° C at the closing stages. Weather Channel also forecasts similar conditions with zero percent chance of rain. So, weather is unlikely to interrupt proceedings on Saturday (November 11), meaning a full game can be played at the iconic venue.

Eden Gardens pitch report for ENG vs PAK World Cup match Four pitches of the nine strips have been selected by the ICC to host the five ICC World Cup 2023 matches, including the semi final, in Eden Gardens in Kolkata. All the wickets at the venue have been prepared using black cotton soil, which helps retain the bounce. The most recent games at the venue have seen a mixture of results with two ending in favour of the team batting first and the other in favour of the team chasing. All three matches have been played on different wickets that have assisted the quick bowlers in the early stages.

Pitch and conditions: Bowlers beware

There's some grass on what looks like a dry pitch. It's also off-centre, which will result in a short boundary one side. It's expected to be hot and quite humid, with rain not in the offing.

How did England get here to a position of being nearly eliminated from the Champions Trophy? How have Pakistan for the second time running found themselves muddled up in a precarious NRR battle to qualify? Leading up to the tournament, the two sides would have had way higher expectations of themselves, with one being the defending champion and the other recently ranked the No. 1 ODI side in the world. While England have found everything going wrong for them, and at a loss for answers at one point, Pakistan will be ruing a lot of missed chances through the tournament when they could not pull together collectively.

Primary amongst their concerns would have been the lack of teeth shown by the bowlers on relatively different conditions across India, where they haven't had the chance to play previously. After a litany of problems caused by their board, the team finally managed a bit of a turnaround in the latter stages to be still staying afloat even as multiple leaks spring. England sail on a similar boat, and will have a lot to play for apart from pride as a forgettable tournament draws down to a close.


NRR scenario for Pakistan

Pakistan find themselves in a similar boat to 2019 where they had to win their final league game by a 300+ run margin to pip New Zealand on NRR for a semifinal spot. Both Pakistan and New Zealand finished on 11 points each, but the latter qualified on better NRR (despite Pakistan beating New Zealand in the league phase on each occasion).

If Pakistan bat first

If Pakistan score - Restrict England to
300 - 13 runs
350 - 63 runs
400 - 112 runs
450 - 162 runs
500 - 211 runs
If Pakistan field first

If England score - Win inside
20 - 1.3 overs
50 - 2 overs
100 - 2.5 overs
150 - 3.4 overs
200 - 4.3 overs
300 - 6.1 overs
England's Champions Trophy 2025 qualification scenarios:

- Beat Pakistan (6 points) & hope at least one of Bangladesh or Netherlands lose their final game (4 points)

- If they lose to Pakistan (4 points) & they would need at least one of Bangladesh or Netherlands lose their final game (4 points)

- If England lose to Pakistan and both Bangladesh and Netherlands win their respective final games, England cannot qualify.

- For England's NRR to fall below that of Bangladesh's current NRR (the next best placed team on NRR among the four contenders), they have to lose by around 140 runs.

In the spotlight: Jos Buttler and Fakhar Zaman

As puzzling as it was untimely, Jos Buttler's sudden absence of form and confidence at this World Cup has been one of several low points from an England perspective. For a man who played such a pivotal part in clinching the trophy four years ago, his ascent to the captaincy should have been the zenith of his ODI career. This tournament, instead, has been its nadir. A 43 against New Zealand to open the tournament was as good as it got for England's most destructive batter, failing to manage even half of that in any of his next seven innings. However, Pakistan are his favourite ODI opposition, his average and strike rate ballooning to 65.25 and 150.86, respectively, against them, compared to career numbers of 39.79 and 117.16. The World Cup may have long gone, but he still has the chance to secure for his side a trip to Pakistan in a couple of years' time, with a win assuring England of a spot in the next Champions Trophy.

Even as he found his touch to such devastating effect against New Zealand, Fakhar Zaman will be keenly aware of the poor timing of his drop in form. Just six months ago, he scored three successive hundreds and looked like the most dangerous opener any side would have at this World Cup. It was the sort of form he had maintained throughout this cycle, only to inexplicably elude him when it mattered most. Fakhar looked a shadow of his former self at the start of the tournament, and was dropped one game in. For a man made for the big occasion, he averaged 22 in World Cup matches until that point. He would finally remedy that with 81 and 126* in the two games since his return, but it's destined to be just a little too late. At 33, this might just be Fakhar's last World Cup game, which might free him up just that little bit more. And an unshackled Fakhar will always be one to watch.

Teams:

Pakistan

The slow nature of the surface could see the possible inclusion of a spinner instead of a pacer. The toss-up could be between Usama Mir and Hasan Ali, if Pakistan decide to go back to the eleven that won them their previous game at this venue.

Tactics & Strategy

Adil Rashid has been at his best in the middle overs phase for England. His battle against the likes of Rizwan and Babar Azam on who controls this phase is set to have a big role on a pitch that is ought to aid the bowler.

Probable XI: Fakhar Zaman, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Agha Salman, Usama Mir/Hasan Ali, Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Haris Rauf

England

They are unlikely to make any changed unless injury-enforced given that they're coming off a win, and have the Champions Trophy qualification on the line.

Tactics & Strategy

Pakistan's bowlers found their feet collectively at Eden Gardens in their game against Bangladesh, in an otherwise poor tournament. With the shortish lengths and change of pace coming into play, England could play into Pakistan's hands if they're on an all-out attack mode while the pitch calls for a bit of caution.

Probable XI: Jonny Bairstow, Dawid Malan, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Harry Brook, Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, David Willey, Adil Rashid, Gus Atkinson

Don't forget to submit your predictions for match 44.

Toss prediction before 1:30 PM IST and rest of the predictions before 2:00 PM IST.

All the very best to everyone!

Tag Credit: Sutapasima

When: Saturday, November 11 at 14:00 IST

Where: The Eden Gardens, Kolkata

What to expect: The pitches so far have been slow and difficult for quick scoring. Expect spin to play a big part once again, and the fast bowlers to fall back on change of pace options.

HEAD TO HEAD - LAST 5 MATCHES

England won by 3 wickets (with 12 balls remaining) 13-Jul-2021

England won by 52 runs 10-Jul-2021

England won by 9 wickets (with 169 balls remaining) 08-Jul-2021

Pakistan won by 14 runs 03-Jun-2019

England won by 54 runs 19-May-2019

ENG vs PAK Head-to-Head Overall Record:

Matches Played 91

England Won 56

Pakistan Won 32

N/R 3

Batters To Watch(recent stats)

Dawid Malan, ENG

8 M • 373 Runs • 46.63 Avg • 103.32 SR

Ben Stokes, ENG

5 M • 220 Runs • 44 Avg • 83.01 SR

Mohammad Rizwan, PAK

10 M • 447 Runs • 74.5 Avg • 101.36 SR

Abdullah Shafique, PAK

8 M • 388 Runs • 48.5 Avg • 90.86 SR

Bowlers To Watch(recent stats)

Adil Rashid, ENG

8 M • 13 Wkts • 5.14 Econ • 32.15 SR

Chris Woakes, ENG

7 M • 9 Wkts • 5.47 Econ • 33 SR

Shaheen Shah Afridi, PAK

10 M • 19 Wkts • 6 Econ • 28.42 SR

Haris Rauf, PAK

9 M • 13 Wkts • 6.7 Econ • 34.15 SR

Probable Best Batter:

Fakhar Zaman (Pakistan)

Pakistan opener Fakhar Zaman could be the best batter in game 44 of the ongoing ODI World Cup 2023. Scoring 126* runs in his previous game against New Zealand, Zaman will be keen on putting in yet another good performance against England.

Also Check: Most Runs in World Cup 2023

Probable best bowler:

Shaheen Afridi (Pakistan)

Pakistan’s Shaheen Afridi could be the best bowler in game 44 of the ODI World Cup 2023. Afridi has been the spearhead for Pakistan for quite some time now, and with 19 wickets in his last 10 matches, Afridi’s spell could come in handy for the Men in Green.