Pakistan v England, limited overs matches. UAE, 2015.

[ianp1970]

My current WT20 squad is:

Hales
Roy
Root
Morgan
Vince
Buttler
Billings
Ali
Rashid
Parry
Stokes
Woakes
Willey
Topley
Finn

And if the CT50 was being held this summer, rather than next:

Hales
Roy
Ali
Root
Morgan
Taylor
Stokes
Buttler
Ansari
Rashid
Woakes
Willey
Topley
Finn
Plunkett

[Slipstream]

Great catch by Plunkett. Could he have overtaken Finn (who would have been first choice before this series)? His extra pace is useful, and he's a better batter/fielder. Difficult to say who England's best three seamers are out of:

Finn
Woakes
Wood
Willey
Plunkett
Jordan
Topley

And maybe, Stokes.

Woakes has had a good tour.

Broad?

Broad is a better 20/20 bowler and has experience 65 wickets at 22.93 econ 7.62. I'd pick Broad, Finn and Topley with reserves Plunkett and Wood.

Finn 7.28
Topley 7.37
Plunkett 7.58
Jordan 8.27
Wood 8.66
Willey 9.58
Stokes 9.66
Woakes 9.86

[Arthur Crabtree]

Finn, Willey, Woakes, Topley and Plunkett, plus Stokes would be mine, though I suspect that might be one too many for India, and I haven't ruled Bopara out as a bowler for the conditions. Not sure who to leave out though.

[Aidan11]

Next game not until Monday. Odd that they do B2B games then wait three days for the next.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Different venue for the third game though.

[The Professor]

Despite Woakes' redemption, the quality of our death bowling yesterday was poor.

[hopeforthebest]

Despite Woakes' redemption, the quality of our death bowling yesterday was poor.

Many world class bowlers have been given the treatment by Afridi when he's in that mood.

[Arthur Crabtree]

If the pitch was as good as the commentators were saying, I suppose you'd expect them to go for a few, and it was only that one over from Woakes that went for many. You can say they didn't land their yorkers, but Pakistan used the crease well. There were a few wides and free hits, it's true. England's death bowling has been better recently. Partly because they have been taking wickets in the middle overs, as Plunkett and Rashid did. Shahid Afridi had a swing, and middled a few. That can happen, even now, though it might suggest that if the top order was still in at the end, the England bowlers might be under more pressure.

[backfootpunch]

Other than Starc nobody in the world lands there yorkers consistently

The margin for error has narrowed considerably since the ball stopped reversing

[m@tt]

My T20 squad would be

Hales, Roy, Root, Morgan, Buttler, Stokes, Ali, Willey, Rashid, Finn, Topley, Billings

Two from Woakes, Wood, Plunkett and Broad
Ansari if he can debut in SA, otherwise Parry

If the 50 over tournament was next week, then same as the above but Bairstow for Billings and Taylor for someone else.

[The Professor]

If the pitch was as good as the commentators were saying, I suppose you'd expect them to go for a few, and it was only that one over from Woakes that went for many. You can say they didn't land their yorkers, but Pakistan used the crease well. There were a few wides and free hits, it's true. England's death bowling has been better recently. Partly because they have been taking wickets in the middle overs, as Plunkett and Rashid did. Shahid Afridi had a swing, and middled a few. That can happen, even now, though it might suggest that if the top order was still in at the end, the England bowlers might be under more pressure.

I just feel we didn't do our homework. We know what Afridi likes and we didn't bowl strategically enough to counter that.

We have some awesome bowlers but where are our versions of our Narine or Steyn who can smother the final overs of a game?

Probably hard to breed a bowler soecifically for the death; a lot of it is instinct and intuition.

[dan08]

If the pitch was as good as the commentators were saying, I suppose you'd expect them to go for a few, and it was only that one over from Woakes that went for many. You can say they didn't land their yorkers, but Pakistan used the crease well. There were a few wides and free hits, it's true. England's death bowling has been better recently. Partly because they have been taking wickets in the middle overs, as Plunkett and Rashid did. Shahid Afridi had a swing, and middled a few. That can happen, even now, though it might suggest that if the top order was still in at the end, the England bowlers might be under more pressure.

I just feel we didn't do our homework. We know what Afridi likes and we didn't bowl strategically enough to counter that.

We have some awesome bowlers but where are our versions of our Narine or Steyn who can smother the final overs of a game?

Probably hard to breed a bowler soecifically for the death; a lot of it is instinct and intuition.

Steyn isn't a great example. He's a very average death bowler.

[The Professor]

He's got the highest amount of wickets in the last 4 overs of any T20 bowler since 2010

[Slipstream]

Reports that Broad to be picked for ODIs and 20/20s for SA trip. In ODIs he is not that good anymore. Maybe they feel he will get some experience in the ODIs for the 20/20s as he has played neither for a while.

[The Professor]

If the pitch was as good as the commentators were saying, I suppose you'd expect them to go for a few, and it was only that one over from Woakes that went for many. You can say they didn't land their yorkers, but Pakistan used the crease well. There were a few wides and free hits, it's true. England's death bowling has been better recently. Partly because they have been taking wickets in the middle overs, as Plunkett and Rashid did. Shahid Afridi had a swing, and middled a few. That can happen, even now, though it might suggest that if the top order was still in at the end, the England bowlers might be under more pressure.

I just feel we didn't do our homework. We know what Afridi likes and we didn't bowl strategically enough to counter that.

We have some awesome bowlers but where are our versions of our Narine or Steyn who can smother the final overs of a game?

Probably hard to breed a bowler soecifically for the death; a lot of it is instinct and intuition.

Just seen Narine has been banned for an illegal action....maybe that's what we need.