PALLEKELE — Pakistan on Monday warned England’s inconsistent batting line-up to expect a trial by spin when the teams clash in the T20 World Cup Super Eights, with the in-form Sahibzada Farhan pointing to England’s struggles against Sri Lanka’s spinners .
Pakistan batsman Sahibzada Farhan told reporters that England struggled to 146-9 against Sri Lanka’s spinners on Sunday . He said England can expect more of the same from Pakistan’s spinners when they meet on the same Pallekele ground in Kandy on Tuesday night .
Pakistan’s Spin Dominance
Pakistan’s spinners have been lethal in the tournament, taking 26 wickets in four matches so far. In contrast, their seamers have dismissed only seven batsmen .
“What we saw in the Sri Lanka-England game was that the ball was gripping and England struggled against spin,” said Sahibzada, who tops the T20 World Cup run-scoring chart with 220 runs . “Sri Lanka have one or two spinners but we have five in all so we will give England a tough time on a pitch that looks good and will grip” .
Pakistan possess a dangerous spin attack, featuring a unique weapon in Usman Tariq and his pronounced pause before he releases the ball . They are likely to bring in spinner Abrar Ahmed in place of seaming all-rounder Faheem Ashraf .
Tournament Context
Pakistan desperately need a win after their first Super Eights match against New Zealand was washed out . A defeat would put England through to the semi-finals with a game to spare . Pakistan would then need to beat Sri Lanka in their final Super Eights match and hope other results go their way to reach the last four .
History will be against Pakistan—they have never beaten England in three previous Twenty20 World Cup clashes .
England’s Response
England may name an unchanged side for the fifth match in succession, with Liam Dawson, Will Jacks, Adil Rashid, and Jacob Bethell providing their spin options . All-rounder Liam Dawson said England won’t mind one bit if another “ugly” win secures Harry Brook’s side a semi-final berth .
“We know that we can play a lot better,” Dawson told reporters after the win over Sri Lanka . “But at the end of the day in tournament cricket, you just need to get the win, however ugly” .
England’s bowlers came to the rescue for the third time in the tournament, after also defending below-par totals against Nepal and Italy . “The fight we’ve shown with the ball shows that this team is in a very good place,” said Dawson .
England captain Brook has the hit-the-deck-hard Jamie Overton and left-arm swing bowler Sam Curran as seam options, while Will Jacks opened the bowling with his off-spin on Sunday and destroyed Sri Lanka’s top order with figures of 3-22 .
Player Battle: Sahibzada vs. Archer
Sahibzada, who scored an unbeaten 100 against Namibia in Pakistan’s final group match, said he was ready for the threat of England’s express pace bowler Jofra Archer .
“Facing Archer will not be difficult because I have faced similar bowlers in Pakistan,” said Sahibzada . “So if he has plans against me, I also have plans against him” .
Pitch Concerns
Dawson cautioned that the wicket on Tuesday night could play very differently to the tacky slow track they encountered on Sunday, which had sweated under covers after days of rain in Kandy .
“Obviously, a different challenge on Tuesday at a night game. It could be a better wicket. We’ll have to wait and see what happens,” he said .
