Match Prediction:
On Saturday, England will face Pakistan in the tournament’s penultimate group stage encounter, Match 44 of the 2023 Cricket World Cup. England, the 2019 Cricket World Cup champions, have only won two matches this season, but one of those triumphs came against the Netherlands in their most recent match. Pakistan is still in contention for a top-four spot, but must defeat England by 287 runs to equal fourth-placed New Zealand on points and net-run-rate.This game begins at 14:00 local time at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
England’s players and fans were ecstatic when they finally got another win in the competition, thumping the Netherlands in Pune. This will be a much tougher battle, but with a place in the 2025 Champions Trophy on the line, we expect England to put in another strong showing.
With some excellent aggressive hitting at the top of the order against New Zealand, Pakistan kept their prospects of reaching the semi-finals alive. They will need more of the same in this encounter, but their bowling will need to be better to upset a confident England team.
Winning Chances:
Toss Prediction:
Earlier in the competition, Pakistan won at Eden Gardens when batting second, but the other two games were won by the team batting first. Pakistan must bat first and then beat England by 287 runs to swing the net-run-rate in their favor. As a result, we anticipate that both sides will opt to bat first.
Weather Report:
While there may be some cloud cover throughout this game, Eden Gardens is expected to see mostly sunny skies and a temperature in the upper 30s throughout.
Pitch Report:
Eden Gardens is an excellent batting wicket, and bowlers will have to fight hard for their dismissals. A par score will be over 300 runs in the first innings, and the surface in Kolkata is expected to be fast.
England Preview:
Jos Buttler revealed two changes for England ahead of their massive win against the Netherlands, with Mark Wood and Liam Livingstone replaced by Gus Atkinson and Harry Brook. Wood is totally fit and ready to play in this game.
England Squad Predicted:
Jonny Bairstow, Dawid Malan, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Harry Brook, Jos Buttler (c) (wk), Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, David Willey, Mark Wood, Adil Rashid
Pakistan Preview:
Pakistan made one change ahead of their must-win game against New Zealand, with Hasan Ali replacing Usama Mir. After conceding 401/6 in the previous match, the bowling attack will be scrutinized, but no changes are expected for this encounter.
Pakistan Squad Predicted
Abdullah Shafique, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Agha Salman, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Wasim, Haris Rauf
England vs Pakistan Prediction:
We, like many other pundits, anticipate a competitive encounter on Saturday between an improving England and Pakistan, who have won their last two matches. Pakistan’s batters have been more consistent throughout the competition, but England’s bowlers have really picked up their standards over the last three games, so this could be an exciting match. Our opinion is that England will build on their previous victory by winning another close game in Kolkata.
