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Pakistan’s home series against West Indies early next year is likely to be postponed until the following season. The two sides were to play a three-match T20I series in January but ESPNcricinfo understands both boards are happy to reschedule it for 2024.The resulting space in the calendar potentially allows players from both sides to become available for the various T20 leagues during that period. The ILT20 in the UAE, the SA20 in South Africa, the BBL in Australia and the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) are all taking place in that month.West Indies have already visited Pakistan twice in the last 10 months, albeit because the Covid-19 pandemic split one white-ball series in December 2021 into two. The two sides played three T20Is that month, before a Covid outbreak in the West Indies camp meant the subsequent ODIs had to be postponed to June this year. They played the ODIs in Multan, as part of the 2023 World Cup Super League.This series of three T20Is was penciled in between New Zealand’s visit to Pakistan in the winter of 2022-23 and the Pakistan Super League next year. The three games will most likely be added to West Indies’ visit in February 2024 when they are due to play three Tests as part of the World Test Championship.Various West Indian players have already been signed up to take part in the BBL, SA20 and ILT20. Pakistan’s players did not feature in the SA20 auction because of a combination of – at the time – their international home schedule but also suspicions that they would not find a place in a league in which all six franchises are owned by IPL teams. No Pakistani players have been given NOCs for the ILT20 either. The beneficiary could be the BPL which emerges as a destination for some of them in that newly opened window.

Kane Williamson is pleased with the form of allrounder Michael Bracewell and opening batter Finn Allen as New Zealand build up to the men’s T20 World Cup.Bracewell, who is more of a batting allrounder for his domestic side Wellington, emerged as the joint-highest wicket-taker in the T20I tri-series in Christchurch, with eight strikes in five games at a scarcely believable economy rate of 4.94. Those returns fetched him the Player-of-the-Series award, though New Zealand lost the final to Pakistan on Friday.Related

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Allen, who was picked ahead of Martin Guptill, showed his explosive power at the top, striking at just over 145 across five games. Both players have now made strong cases to be in New Zealand’s starting XI for the T20 World Cup.”Both performed beautifully well and [they] played really valuable roles within the side,” Williamson said at the post-match press conference. “[They play] complementary roles too – Finn at the top is super aggressive and hits the ball really, really hard and looks to take it on, which has been great. And it complements Dev [Devon Conway] really well.”Michael – Man of the Series – incredible effort, especially to not win the series as a team. He showed his contributions throughout these five-six games. He was really disciplined with his lengths and made life quite difficult on these sorts of pitches as well.”In the final, Bracewell bowled two tight overs in the powerplay in which he gave up just four runs and drew a top edge from Babar Azam to midwicket. Mitchell Santner is usually New Zealand’s go-to powerplay spinner, but Bracewell has shown that he can also bowl the tough overs against top batters. Bracewell also tied down Mohammad Rizwan, keeping him to a run-ball 6 against him.”It [bowling in the powerplay] is something that I’ve practiced a lot now, particularly in the nets and had a chance to go out in the middle and bowl a few times in the powerplay,” Bracewell told . “It’s something that I am getting more and more comfortable with. Obviously, it’s pretty daunting bowling to Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam. But it’s a challenge that I’m really enjoying.”In last season’s Super Smash, Bracewell took only six wickets in 25 overs at an economy rate of 6.84. Having done well for New Zealand – both at home and away – Bracewell feels he is a more rounded offspinner now than he was last summer.”I feel very fortunate for the opportunities that I’ve got. I’m just trying to learn as much as I can and soak up as much knowledge from the rest of the spin bowlers in our group,” he said. “Being able to play in different conditions all around the world is an absolute privilege. So, I’m really enjoying it and I feel I have a few more skills than I did eight months ago.”With New Zealand carefully managing their injury-prone quicks Lockie Ferguson and Adam Milne, and Santner missing the early exchanges of the tri-series, the team management has had to juggle between finding their balance for the tri-series and preparing for the World Cup.Finn Allen “is super aggressive and hits the ball really, really hard,” Kane Williamson noted•Getty Images

“It’s not really how we were looking at this [tri-series]. We were looking at this tournament in isolation a little bit,” Williamson said. “Having said that clearly, there’s a big tournament at the end of it, but trying to focus on what’s in front of us and play the cricket that’s in front of us. You can sometimes get carried away looking ahead and all these sorts of things; so, I thought that was good. There was some improvement throughout the series and some lessons.”I think it’s valuable as a team to get this sort of exposure and competition quickly before a tournament like that. Tournament sport – it’s different and not playing similar teams day in and day out. It’s thinking on our toes and adjusting as a side quickly with different venues and different oppositions.”New Zealand dropped at least eight catches in the tri-series, but Williamson wasn’t overly concerned by it. He drew confidence from New Zealand’s tidy effort in the field on Friday in isolation.”That [dropped chances] was definitely touched on [in team discussions],” Williamson said. “Not just the catches; it can happen, although it was a little bit out of character. As a side, it’s something that we pride ourselves on, but that energy and intensity how we operate… we definitely saw an improvement today, which is important and hopefully we can continue that standard going ahead.”New Zealand will open their T20 World Cup campaign against defending champions and hosts Australia at the SCG on October 22.

Pakistan have recalled fast bowler Hasan Ali and picked uncapped middle-order batter Kamran Ghulam for the upcoming two-match Test series against New Zealand at home. Shaheen Shah Afridi continues to miss out as he recovers from a knee injury he picked up in the 2022 T20 World Cup final.Naseem Shah, who missed the last two Tests against England with a shoulder injury, has also returned to the squad after being declared fit. But Haris Rauf, who had also picked up an injury on debut in the first Test against England and did not play in the next two matches, is still recovering, and has been left out.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Ghulam, 27, had also been picked for the Bangladesh Test series a year ago but didn’t get a game then. He has played 44 first-class matches and averages 47.36, having struck 10 centuries and 18 half-centuries for his 3268 runs. He replaces Azhar Ali in the squad after the senior batter’s retirement. Ghulam had scored a record 1249 runs for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the 2020-21 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy and was part of the victorious side in the same tournament last season. He is in fine form these days as well, having scored 92, 0, 123* and 98* in the one-day format in the Pakistan Cup this month. In the QeA Trophy before that, he scored 597 runs from 14 innings to average 42.64.Hasan returns to the squad after being dropped for the series against England, which the visitors swept 3-0. His last Test was against Sri Lanka in Galle in July.Fast bowler Mohammad Ali and bowling allrounder Faheem Ashraf, who were in the squad for the England Tests, have both been excluded for the upcoming series and advised to participate in the ongoing Pakistan Cup, the PCB said in its statement.The series will start on December 26 in Karachi and then move to Multan for the second game starting January 3. That will be followed by three day-night ODIs back in Karachi from January 10 to 14.Pakistan squad: Babar Azam (capt), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Agha Salman, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim, Naseem Shah, Nauman Ali, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Saud Shakeel, Shan Masood and Zahid Mehmood

India’s stand-in captain Hardik Pandya has described the Lucknow pitch as a “shocker” after his side chased down 100 with just a ball to spare in the second T20I against New Zealand. The Ekana Stadium track offered big turn throughout the game, much like how the Ranchi pitch did in the first T20I on Friday.”To be honest, this was a shocker of a wicket,” Hardik told at the post-match presentation. “Two games… the kind of wickets we played on, I don’t mind difficult wickets. I’m all up for that but these wickets are not made for T20 … Other than that, very happy [with the result].”On Sunday, the spinners bowled 30 out of the 40 overs in a match that produced sixes. It is two more overs than the previous record for most overs bowled by spinners from Full-Member teams in a T20I.Related

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Hardik added that there was so much happening off the surface that the batters had to be quite circumspect. “It wasn’t that it was a slow, turning wicket,” he said. “But actually it was carrying through very well and to be honest, it was a shocker of a wicket. We were just playing the ball and seeing whichever the best opportunity or whichever the best position we can get in and made sure we keep rotating the strike.”

Santner: ‘Was trying to find spinners from everywhere’

New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner was surprised by the amount of purchase the spinners got later in the evening. There was so much assistance that he squeezed out four overs from wicketkeeper-turned-part-time offspinner Glenn Phillips. Mark Chapman, also a part-time fingerspinner, pitched in with an over of his own, as New Zealand dragged the game down to the very last over, despite posting just 99 for 8.”It was obviously a great game of cricket,” Santner said, “To get it so close was a pretty good effort from the boys. If we got an extra 10-15 [runs], it could’ve been the difference, but I think the calmness of Hardik and Surya [Suryakumar Yadav] to get them over the line was pretty good. I was trying to find them [spinners] from everywhere. I was asking Lockie [Ferguson] if he could bowl some offspin but yeah I think you don’t often see more than 12 overs of spin out there. I think maybe we bowled 16 or 17, so it’s definitely something different.”

Gambhir, Neesham also critical of Lucknow track

Speaking on , former India batter Gautam Gambhir and New Zealand allrounder James Neesham echoed Hardik’s thoughts on the pitch.”I don’t think the New Zealand batsmen were found wanting,” Neesham said. “I think that was, like GG [Gautam Gambhir] mentioned, a ‘sub-standard’ surface, I don’t think anyone really played the sort of fluent innings through both innings. So, obviously two very high-quality spin-bowling attacks, but when a good number of people turn up at the ground to watch and want to be entertained, it’s a bit of shame but the silver lining was it ended up being a bit of a low-scoring thriller.”1:43

Mhambrey: ‘It looked like a challenging pitch, happy we controlled the game’

Bracewell: ‘A variety of wickets around the world is a positive thing’

Michael Bracewell, who picked up 1 for 13 in his four overs, wasn’t as critical of the Lucknow track, and reckoned that it wasn’t necessarily a bad advertisement for T20 cricket.”No, I think it was cool to play on a different wicket, and as I said earlier, it’s one of those ones where if you play on a wicket like that all the time or if you or if you play on a wicket that’s flat all the time, then you don’t get a true test of your skill,” Bracewell said at his post-match press conference. “So, I think a variety of wickets around the world is a positive thing and India were just too good today on a wicket that probably suited their style of play and obviously growing up playing in those conditions as well. So, it’s one of those ones where you expect different wickets around the world and we can’t complain; it’s exciting to try and figure out a way to play on these wickets.”

Mhambrey: ‘You have to ask curator about behaviour of pitch’

India’s bowling coach Paras Mhambrey also spoke of the challenges posed by the Ekana Stadium surface, and praised his four-man spin attack, which was bolstered by the return of legspinner Yuzvendra Chahal.”Firstly when we saw the wicket, we realised that it was on the drier side,” Mhambrey said at his post-match press conference. “Obviously, there was a little bit of grass covering in the middle, but there was no grass at both the ends. So, when we came yesterday, it looked like it would turn. We realised that it would be a challenging wicket. The reason [why the pitch behaved like that]… you have to ask the curator.”Was it time? or I don’t know and I think he’s the right person to answer that question. But yeah definitely it was challenging. We knew that it would be a big challenge and luckily happy with the way we controlled the game. I think we allowed 100 runs and anything beyond 120-130, I thought it would have been more challenging but we did well to restrict them to 99 and give us a reasonable target to chase.”

Ravindra Jadeja “hadn’t felt the sun for about five months” during his long recovery from a knee injury and surgery that had sidelined him since August last year, a period that he said was “tough” and “frustrating”.Jadeja returned to action just in time for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia, which begins on February 9 in Nagpur, successfully testing his fitness in a Ranji Trophy game for Saurashtra. He bowled 41.1 overs against Tamil Nadu and took eight wickets, including a seven-for, and made scores of 15 and 25.”When I went to the ground on the first day, it felt weird,” Jadeja told BCCI.tv. “I hadn’t felt the sun for about five months because I was training indoors and in the gym. I wondered if my body would sustain 90 overs out in the sun on the first day.Related

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“The first day was very tough, especially in the Chennai heat. But my body got used to it eventually on day 2 and 3. Then I felt that I was fit, and I could play four-day or five-day cricket. That game went well, and I picked up wickets, too. A player needs such confidence ahead of a big series, and luckily I got that. I feel good about coming back after preparation, and touchwood, whatever happens hereon will be good.”Jadeja injured his right knee during the Asia Cup last August, and said he had to take a decision on when to have surgery.”I was struggling with my knees and had to get a surgery done. I had to take a decision whether I had to do it before the [T20] World Cup or after the World Cup,” he said. “The doctor suggested I get it done before the World Cup because even if I had not got it operated, chances of me playing in the World Cup was very less. So I made up my mind and went under the knife.”

Jadeja: ‘The two months after injury was very tough’

Jadeja had surgery in early September, and said his recovery period was “a bit up and down,” as he missed the T20 World Cup and all of India’s subsequent fixtures.”It is frustrating to be away from cricket for five months, and I was waiting eagerly to get fit and play for India,” he said. “The period after surgery was tough – I had to undergo a lengthy rehab and training. There were thoughts about when I will get fit.”When you watch matches on TV, I was imagining myself there and realising what I was missing and wished I was there. Those things, though, motivate you to get fit quicker by undergoing rehab and training, strengthen my knees and make a comeback.”Jadeja spent a lot of time at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru, where he underwent most of his rehab. “The physios and trainers at NCA worked a lot on my knees, and gave me enough time. NCA used to be shut on Sundays but they used to come down for me and especially help me out.”I used to shuttle between the NCA [Bengaluru] and home [Rajkot] every two-three weeks to keep my mind fresh and help me recover soon. But the two months after injury was very tough, because I was unable to walk and neither could go anywhere. My friends and family helped me in that critical phase.”In fact, the trainers at NCA also boosted my confidence. Whenever I used to complain about the pain and put it off, they used to tell me, ‘Do it for the country, not for you’. I felt good that they were very serious about my knee and wanted me to get back on the field soon.”Jadeja is now poised to made his comeback for India in the first Test against Australia, where he could line up alongside R Ashwin and Axar Patel if India choose to play three spinners in Nagpur.

Clare Connor has been appointed as deputy chief executive officer at the ECB, while taking on the new position of England women’s managing director that more closely mirrors Rob Key’s role with the men’s team.Connor, who captained England from 2000 to 2005, spent 15 years as the ECB’s managing director of women’s cricket and became interim CEO in June 2022 after Tom Harrison’s tenure came to an end.She starts her new roles with immediate effect, with Richard Gould now installed as chief executive on a full-time basis after leaving his most recent post with Bristol City Football Club at the end of January.The ECB said in a press release that Connor would work closely with Gould on “board-level leadership responsibilities” and that her initial focus would be managing the “game-wide response” to the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket’s upcoming report into diversity and inclusion within the sport.Connor said: “It was an enormous honour to have served as interim CEO of ECB, and I’m delighted that in this new role I can continue to make a difference across the game as we strive to become a more inclusive sport. Cricket’s response to the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket’s report will be a vital moment for our game and we must use it to change for the better.”Throughout my many years working in cricket so far, I have been committed to making our game one which includes and welcomes people from every background, and that’s what will continue to drive me on in everything I do.”Gould said: “This is a huge year for cricket, with the men’s and women’s Ashes to look forward to, the women’s game developing so quickly and domestic cricket on a fast growth strategy, while we also have the challenges of the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket report to come.”I am delighted therefore that Clare has accepted the role of Deputy CEO and MD England Women. She did an excellent job as Interim CEO, and prior to this as MD Women’s Cricket. The new role will allow her to continue to lead and influence across the game, allowing us all to benefit from her experience and knowledge.”Connor’s previous role as managing director of women’s cricket will not be replaced. Beth Barrett-Wild, who oversees the women’s Hundred, will instead have her remit expanded, becoming director of the women’s professional game.

On Tuesday, Nick Hockley was named as Cricket Australia’s interim chief executive in the wake of the deposed Kevin Roberts. On Wednesday he was jointly presiding over the awful task of making 40 employees redundant from the governing body. And on Thursday he was speaking for CA on radio, stressing the importance of unity in the game.As the T20 World Cup local organising body’s chief executive, Hockley had a seat at CA’s executive table, so was close at hand to watch the chaos that unfolded from the moment Roberts and the CA board chose to announce mass staff stand downs in April while seeking deep financial across the game.Highly rated by his own staff, Hockley was seen as the ideal interim while CA went on a more extensive search for the next long-term chief executive. But he has been left with the unenviable task of patching up staff, state and player relationships in the decreasing amount of time available between now and the start of a summer that must be run as effectively and efficiently as possible in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.ALSO READ: Timeline: Three months that brought down CA chief Kevin Roberts“It’s been an extremely difficult time, this week even more so,” Hockley told . “Yesterday we had to let go some really, really great people, but it’s all about getting the team back to work, reaching out to the states and territories and the ACA. We are so much stronger together.”We’ve got a huge amount to look forward to with India coming. In very difficult circumstances it’s a massive privilege to be asked [to take the role]. I’ve been in the game here for eight years, I care deeply about the people. It’s by no means broken.”In many respects we’ve been extremely fortunate compared to other sporting codes with the timing of Covid-19. Australia are world champions three and a half months ago, rank No. 1 in four out of the five ICC ranking formats, we’ve got India coming, we’ve got the World Cup, we’ve got the Ashes the following year. There is so much to look forward to and really it’s about pulling together.”ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Hockley recalled the week after the wildly successful women’s T20 World Cup final, watched by more than 86,000 spectators at the MCG, as the moment in which all plans were thrown into chaos, and sympathised with the highly conservative course of action taken by Roberts and the CA board chaired by Earl Eddings.”I was there with a seat at the table in those deliberations, from the perspective of making sure that the World Cup was integrated in terms of contingency planning and we’re all working together on the best measures around restrictions and things,” he said. “And really the world fell off a cliff, it was pretty much that Monday or Tuesday after the final, and no-one really knew what it meant. But the situation has been evolving, and the measures we announced yesterday I think are prudent and necessary in the circumstances.ALSO READ: T20 World Cup ‘unrealistic’ and ‘unlikely’ this year – Cricket Australia chairman“Things like standing down the majority of the staff, which has just been extremely painful for a lot of people, that’s enabled us to conserve funds, enabled us to really minimise the redundancies we’re having to make moving forward. We’ve just got to be so thankful that in Australia we’re getting sport back, we’re getting crowds back and that’s really my focus now.”The speed at which Hockley’s appointment arrived, after Roberts’ exit was not formalised until late on Monday night, has left many areas unaddressed, such as who will take the reins of the T20 World Cup itself, and whether he will be a contender for the longer-term role – an unlikely possibility though there is every chance Hockley will finish up as a CA executive. What Hockley can promise, as a seasoned stager of major events, is a strong degree of skills in getting a show on the road. He was, after all, the runner of the most recent show.”One thing I know having worked on the World Cups, you can’t deliver a major event on your own. It requires all the states and territories, the venues, the broadcasters, the partners, everyone all coming together, and together one plus one equals more than two,” he said. “I see this immediate time now as making the most of what we’ve got. We owe that to the fans, we owe that massively to those people who we had to stand down yesterday.”

Former Glamorgan and England allrounder Peter Walker has died aged 84 following a stroke.A dependable option with bat and ball, Walker’s standout attribute was his close catching: he managed 697 catches over the course of his first-class career, including a club-record 656 for Glamorgan, with the vast majority at either slip or short leg.Partly educated in South Africa, Walker spent two years in the merchant navy before starting to play first-class cricket, making his debut in 1956. He passed the 1000-run mark in 11 separate seasons as an attacking middle-order batsman, and after starting out as a left-arm swing bowler, he developed into a left-arm orthodox spinner towards the end of his career.He made his Test debut aged 24, making 9 and 37 in a win against South Africa at Edgbaston, and added his only half-century at Lord’s two weeks later. But three games – and three wins – into his England career, he was left out and was never called upon again. Alongside Martin Saggers and Toby Roland-Jones, he is one of three men to have played three Tests or more in his England career while maintaining a 100% win record in the post-war era.He was a key part of the Glamorgan side that went undefeated in the 1969 County Championship season, which culminated in the club’s second title, and retired in 1972 to further his broadcasting career with the BBC, where he was the face of Sunday League coverage for several years.He went on to become an administrator, and was a driving force behind the creation of the National Cricket Centre for Wales at Sophia Gardens. In 2010, he was awarded an MBE for services to cricket, primarily for his role at the centre.He later had a short stint as Glamorgan president, starting his tenure in March 2009 but resigning in November 2010 following the sacking of Jamie Dalrymple as captain and the departure of Matthew Maynard as coach.Glamorgan chairman Gareth Williams said: “Everyone at Glamorgan is saddened to hear this news. Peter was a club legend, a man who gave everything he could to the club he loved while playing, and later in an off-field capacity. He gave so much back to the game, in particular through his work with Cricket Wales and the National Cricket Centre, and through his outstanding service as President of Glamorgan.”Hugh Morris, the club’s chief executive, said: “A combination of world-class catching ability, aggressive batting and accurate spin made him a triple threat and a brilliant allrounder. He helped Glamorgan to win a County Championship title and represented England, making him a true legend of the club.”We may never see another player quite like him, and he will be missed by everyone at the club. Our thoughts go out to his family, and his friends.”

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After all the promise of a competitive ODI series, the T20Is have been something of a damp squib. Pakistan brought their top form to both weekend games, and illustrated the chasm that evidently exists between a Pakistani side that’s rapidly improving and a Zimbabwean unit that needs improvement desperately. teams As you might expect, if these two teams simply go through the motions, Pakistan will nearly always emerge on top and do so with relative comfort.If anything, the hosts may be slightly disappointed they weren’t challenged further to be able to assess how well some of the youngsters afforded opportunities this series would fare in that scenario. Haider Ali and Usman Qadir have both excelled, but they could have been undergoing net sessions for all the intensity of the contest. Haris Rauf’s pace has been enough to get him a cluster of wickets, but he may have to demonstrate more nuanced skills against more competitive opponents. And while Babar Azam has scored two sumptuous half-centuries, you wouldn’t expect any less of him against the quality of bowling he has faced; if anything, his frustration must centre on a failure to remain at the crease to knock off the winning runs. Pakistan have just turned up and not more, and so far, it’s been more than enough.Much of that is down to Zimbabwe. The visitors haven’t come close to a level of performance they will believe they are capable of. In two of the three ODIs, Zimbabwe pushed themselves to the limit. But in the T20Is, even the in-form batsmen have floundered, while with the ball and in the field, Chamu Chibhabha’s side has been – at best – lacklustre.You could level more scathing criticism at Chibhabha himself, who arguably shouldn’t be anywhere near this side based on his numbers over the past several years. When a frontline batsman who averages 13.24 over the past four years leads the side out on a challenging tour, it is of little surprise if he returns just 34 runs in five innings. It’s a level of performance that’s unacceptable for any international side whatever the ranking, and when the middle order doesn’t bail Zimbabwe out – as on Sunday – they fall apart alarmingly quickly.Form guide

Pakistan WWWLW
Zimbabwe LLLLW
Wesley Madhevere looked good while he was out there•AFP via Getty Images

In the spotlightThese are uncertain times for Fakhar Zaman, for whom being the leading run-scorer in the recent National T20 Cup doesn’t seem to have brought international T20 runs. In the format he should be most useful at, at home and against a mediocre attack, Zaman’s lack of confidence has been laid bare by the manner of his dismissal on Sunday. A low-percentage, ill-timed drive straight to mid-on sent him back for 5, the 16th consecutive T20I innings in which he has failed to reach 40. In that time, he has crossed 25 only once, and for all his domestic form, Zaman wouldn’t be able to complain if the Pakistan selectors – who have shown uncharacteristic patience with him – get twitchy fingers after another failure on Tuesday.Despite being the highest run-getter for Zimbabwe in the ODI series, Brendan Taylor’s twin failures in the T20Is may signal a deeper malaise. He, too, has crossed 40 in T20I cricket just once in the past 16 innings, though he has continued to produce cameos fairly regularly. But against Pakistan, he will need to take more leadership at the top of the innings, especially with Chibhabha out of form. If anything, it may relieve some pressure off the young shoulders of Wesley Madhevere, and give his bowlers something to defend if Zimbabwe are to bat first again.Team newsPakistan maybe open to some experimentation in the bowling. Mohammad Musa will be itching to get a game, while even Rohail Nazir could get a call-up with the series sealed.Pakistan (possible): 1 Fakhar Zaman, 2 Babar Azam (capt), 3 Haider Ali, 4 Mohammad Hafeez/Abdullah Shafique, 5 Mohammad Rizwan/Rohail Nazir (wk), 6 Khushdil Shah, 7 Imad Wasim/Faheem Ashraf, 8 Haris Rauf, 9 Wahab Riaz, 10 Mohammad Musa, 11 Mohammad HasnainZimbawe have been somewhat cautious, never quite ringing the changes this series. It would be a surprise to see that change, though with the series gone, they can afford to experiment.Zimbawe (possible): 1 Chamu Chibhabha (capt), 2 Brendan Taylor (wk), 3 Sean Williams, 4 Wesley Madhevere, 5 Craig Ervine, 6 Sikandar Raza, 7 Elton Chigumbura, 8 Tendai Chisoro, 9 Carl Mumba, 10 Richard Ngarava, 11 Blessing MuzarabaniPitch and conditions
The pitches prepared for this series have been dry and flat, and expect that to remain unchanged tomorrow. Rain should not be a factor.Stats and trivia

• Sikandar Raza has batted 34 times in T20Is without being dismissed for a duck. The only active internationals with longer streaks are Kusal Perera (46), Faf du Plessis (47) and David Miller (68)
• Azam has scored six half-centuries in his last nine T20I innings
• Taylor needs 99 runs to become just the second Zimbabwe batsman after Hamilton Masakadza to tally 1000 runs in T20I cricket

What a difference a session makes to the outlook of a tour. It was one Day 4 session in the first Test at Old Trafford that sketched the wafer-thin border between triumph and disaster for England and Pakistan; a passage of play that – in the wake of a washed-out second Test – denied the visitors a shot at a first series win in England in 24 years, and set up the hosts for their first against Pakistan anywhere in a decade.And who knows how much the sting of that failure will linger for Pakistan as they enter the T20 leg of their tour. In ordinary times, a preceding Test series might be rendered irrelevant, but on a tour of close-knit bubbles, isolation protocols and empty stadiums, it might actually be Pakistan’s only true frame of reference.For England, it’s a strikingly different scenario. A wholly different squad, even down to the management staff, will rock up to Manchester for this leg of their bio-secure summer, and while it might appear that a touch of insouciance has crept into England’s white-ball cricket since they lifted the ODI World Cup last year, with two T20 World Cups in the next two years, there’s no reason for that to extend to the shortest format.Babar Azam and Eoin Morgan pose with the series trophy•Getty Images

Currently ranked behind only Australia in T20s, Eoin Morgan’s side have an opportunity to work up handy white-ball momentum before Australia rock up for three T20Is and three ODIs next month, although they will once again be lacking a host of shoo-in names with the likes of Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler and Jofra Archer all out of contention after their time in the Test bubble – not to mention Joe Root, who is set to feature for Yorkshire in the Blast in a bid to restate his credentials in the shortest format.England’s most recent form reference is a slightly bonkers T20I series against South Africa in February, where all three T20Is went down to the final over and they just about held their nerve to eke out a 2-1 series win. It kept alive an unbeaten T20I series run that extends to more than two years now, and if they can keep that going over the next month or so, England could truly think of this as, given the circumstances, just about the ideal home season.If their memories stretch that far, Pakistan would do well to look upon a tour of England four years ago. Well beaten in the ODI series, they approached the one-off T20 with a certain elan that would set the gold standard for T20I cricket in the three years to follow, as they stormed to the World No.1 ranking and put distance between themselves and the rest. England were thrashed by nine wickets, commencing a run from Pakistan which would see them win 29 of 33 T20Is, including 11 consecutive series triumphs.They’ve come back down to earth with an unseemly splat in the 18 months since – that No.1 ranking is certainly long gone – but a younger side that still retains several characters from those heady days may wonder if they can hit the restart button and go again once more. Babar Azam, now leading the side, and the world T20 batsman rankings, has another opportunity to put his stamp on a team one imagines he’ll feature in for much of the next decade. A series win here would certainly be the most gratifying way to have the last laugh.Mohammad Rizwan gets a piggyback from Shaheen Shah Afridi•Getty Images

England WWLWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Pakistan WWLLL

Tom Banton’s breathtaking form for Somerset in the 2019 Blast catapulted him into the national team, but in his (admittedly very brief) stint at the top, it hasn’t quite clicked for him. Fifty-six runs in three T20Is against New Zealand were followed by an underwhelming ODI start, and while eight international innings is no kind of sample size, his most recent T20 numbers don’t make the best reading either. The PSL was an immense struggle for him, managing just 74 runs at the top of the innings – 34 of them in one rain-curtailed 12-over match – even as his opener partner Kamran Akmal finished as the seventh-highest runscorer in the league. He ended up being benched, and while the Old Trafford surface won’t quite be the same as any in Pakistan, he will face some of the bowlers who troubled him there. It’s one to watch out for.ALSO READ: Eoin Morgan challenges young players to seize World Cup rolesBanton’s Peshawar Zalmi teammate Haider Ali was one of Pakistan’s few PSL success stories with the bat, with 239 runs at a strike rate a shade under 160. It followed on from a decent World Cup but it’s not just the numbers when it comes to the 19-year old. The obviously freakish talent, both as striker and stroker of the ball, has led him to reap rewards in T20 cricket as well as first-class. He said recently his batting idol was Rohit Sharma, and while any comparisons would be ludicrous, you can see why the Indian opener is the ideal cricketer for Haider to seek to emulate. The T20 World Cup’s postponement might prove ideal both for him and Pakistan, for if he is to emulate his domestic success on the international stage, he’d be among the first names on the team sheet.

With Jason Roy ruled out by a side strain, Dawid Malan appears set to get another opportunity, having scored 103 not out from 51 balls in his last-but-one outing in New Zealand. Old Trafford has historically favoured spin bowling, so Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid are set to resume their fruitful alliance. England have a wealth of all-round options to bulk out their middle order, but Jonny Bairstow, Eoin Morgan and Sam Billings, who enjoyed a productive run against Ireland, may need to provide the batting ballast.England (possible): 1 Tom Banton 2 Jonny Bairstow (wk) 3 Dawid Malan 4 Eoin Morgan (capt) 5 Sam Billings 6 Moeen Ali 7 Tom Curran 8 Dawid Willey 9 Chris Jordan 10 Adil Rashid 11 Saqib MahmoodA dearth of spinners isn’t exactly a problem for Pakistan, with Shadab Khan one of as many as five potential options Pakistan could line up with. Rizwan’s brilliant Test series may be enough for him to retain his T20 slot even with Sarfaraz Ahmed poised to make a first appearance for Pakistan in nearly a year.Pakistan (possible): 1 Babar Azam (capt), 2 Fakhar Zaman, 3 Shadab Khan, 4 Haider Ali, 5 Shoaib Malik, 6 Mohammad Rizwan/Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 7 Iftikhar Ahmed, 8 Imad Wasim, 9 Mohammad Amir, 10 Wahab Riaz, 11 Shaheen Afridi

In T20s at Old Trafford since 2017, the overall run rate has been 7.98 runs per over, suggesting 160 might be a par score. Rain is expected through much of the day, but should clear in good time for the game to get underway at 6pm. Persistent rain over the week will mean conditions are damp, which could result in a slow outfield. It wouldn’t be too surprising to see Pakistan open with a spinner, as they did to great success while on that jolly T20 streak.

Stats and trivia

• Shoaib Malik is 108 runs away from becoming the first non-West Indian to score 10,000 T20 runs. He needs 31 more to surpass Brendon McCullum, who sits on 9,922.
• In all T20s at Old Trafford since 2017, spinners have conceded 1.3 fewer runs per over than seamers. Their economy rate is 7.27, while seamers have seen their overs go for 8.57.

“This is another opportunity for guys who potentially sit outside that 15 to present their best case, moving forward, for winter tours and the World Cup next year. Opportunities like this don’t come around very often when we have our squad at full strength”
England skipper Eoin Morgan challenges his side to make the most of their chances