England aim whitewash against Pakistan - Fifth ODI preview

Fifth ODI - England v Pakistan, Sophia Gardens, Cardiff
3rd September, 10:30 local | 09:30 GMT

Derek Pringle, a member of the 1992 England squad who made the World Cup final, wrote this week in The Cricket Paper arguing England’s current one-day team is not as good as that team of the early 90s. Pringle was a fine cricketer, knows his stuff and is an eloquent and perceptive writer but he is looking through rose-tinted glasses. This England team is the best ever assembled.

That 1992 team had many fine cricketers – Gooch, Botham and Stewart to name three - and should have won the 1992 final at the MCG. Had it not been for Wasim Akram’s intervention they would have done. Two unplayable deliveries to remove Allan Lamb and Chris Lewis in successive balls when England were coasting at 141-4 in pursuit of 249 changed the game and won it for Pakistan.

Comparing teams from different eras is often futile, especially since the modern one-day game has changed so dramatically from that played in the 1990, but this observer would pick the current England team over any other, including the 1992 squad.

The reasons have been evident this series, one that England look to win 5-0 with a victory at Cardiff in the final game on Sunday: they have Jos Buttler, the best one-day player they have ever produced, and Joe Root, one of the best all-round English batsmen of all time, in the most powerful batting line-up ever assembled; they have a varied bowling attack with pace (Mark Wood, Ben Stokes and Liam Plunkett), swing and left-arm (David Willey) and spin (Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali); to a man, their fielding is athletic and dynamic; and they have won in the subcontinent as well as at home.

The win at Headingley on Thursday was as impressive as any other during the series. In trouble at 72-4 chasing 247, England were under serious pressure. They had changed their side to rest some and give opportunities to others but the middle order, without Buttler, and all-rounder Chris Woakes, proved there is plenty of bench strength in the squad.

Rashid and Ali became the first spinners to take five wickets between them for England in a home One-Day International and in doing so put to rest some questions over their roles in the side. Chris Jordan and David Willey showed glimpses of their class with Jordan’s death bowling proving a particular asset.

England rightly rotated their squad for the last game and so selection will be interesting. Buttler is likely to return to the side in Cardiff with Jonny Bairstow, who was man of the match at his home ground in the last game, having to wait his turn once again. Plunkett may give way for Wood in a like for like change and left-arm spinner Liam Dawson could make his ODI debut in place of Ali.

For Pakistan, it was a missed opportunity to register a much-needed win and it is hard to see how they can summon the energy and motivation to avoid a 5-0 whitewash. Coach Mickey Arthur was honest once again in the aftermath of their last defeat. He is using the series to assess his squad but he cannot have been pleased with what he has seen so far. Javed Miandad has been one of a number of former players to criticise the side.

The problems with Pakistan’s one-day cricket are many but perhaps most pressing is their batting which still struggles to find any sort of fluency or consistency. So far in the series, they have mustered just one partnership over fifty for the top three wickets and only Sharjeel Khan scored at better a run a ball in the last game.

Top order players batting cautiously is not a tactic that will win many games against a powerful side like England but to give it any chance of succeeding, wickets have to be kept in hand. Pakistan found themselves 180-7 at Headingley; hardly a platform from which to attack in the final overs. They are playing out-dated cricket and not doing it very well.

Khan has been one of the positives of the series as has the form of all-rounder Imad Wasim, who has scored 137 runs without being dismissed and has bowled solidly without pulling up trees. Imad was born in Swansea, so the return to Wales will be a homecoming of sorts.

Pakistan made four changes to their side for the previous game yet the result was the same so it is difficult to see where else they can go because their squad is short on class and power. The best course of action may be to pick the same team and see if some consistency will help.

When teams are down, it requires everyone to pull up their sleeves and get stuck in. Mohammad Irfan, brought in for the last game, bowled a fiery spell to remove Jason Roy and Alex Hales but only bowled five overs before retiring from the field with cramp. It was hardly what his team needed and Arthur was obviously annoyed at this in his post-match comments. Whether he plays in Cardiff remains to be seen.

The game will be England’s second ODI in the Welsh capital this season after beating Sri Lanka by 122 runs there in July. The pitch is likely to be another one good for batting, as it was then, although rain forecast on Saturday may leave some moisture around for the quicker men to exploit. The forecast for the match itself is set fair.

Should Morgan's men do as form and confidence suggest to win the series 5-0, it would be further confirmation to hey are England’s best ever.

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