By this time next month, Pakistan will be preparing for a marquee encounter against India at the MCG to kick off its T20 World Cup campaign. The latter was already successful for them as they went on to rack up wins after wins before losing in the semi-finals, but things could be very different this time if they fail to address their issues. Muhammed Hafeez and Shoaib Malik are no longer present to reinforce this mid-ranking, and the substitutions have not shaken confidence either. As Babar Azam and Muhammad Radwan continue to reach the top, the middle ranking has been shaky. Things didn’t change until Good Tuesday (September 20) and so did the hosts fail to capitalize on the start the opening game provided. Iftikhar Ahmed hit six, but the rest fell apart as they went from 109/1 to 158/7 – a total that was chased after with relative ease. While there have been suggestions to split the opening combo in order to bolster the side in the middle, Pakistan has shown no signs of doing exactly that. And now with the World Cup approaching with each passing day, the clock is already ticking if they want to try something different. As far as England is concerned, they will be very happy with the win despite not having many big names. Alex Hales’ return to international cricket proved to be a success and Harry Brooks took advantage of his opportunity. When: Pakistan v England, 2 T20I, September 22, 7:30pm local time Venue: Karachi National Stadium What to expect: Temperatures are expected to remain warm in Karachi. 150 other games 150 decks that can test skills and mood. Team news It would be very surprising if Pakistan intervened in the changes after one defeat. Ideally, they would like these hitters to get another chance to impress. Possible eleventh: Babar Azam (centre), Muhammad Radwan (Week), Haider Ali, Shan Masoud, Iftikhar Ahmad, Khushdil Shah, Muhammad Nawaz, Othman Qadir, Haris Raouf, Naseem Shah, Shahnawaz Dhani England Joss Butler is expected to sit on Karachi’s entire leg. While they have players in reserve, England is expected to remain the same as well. Possible XI: Alex Hales, Philip Salt (week), David Malan, Ben Duckett, Harry Brooke, Muin Ali (centre), Sam Curran, David Wylie, Luke Wood, Adel Rashid, Richard Gleeson
