That’s it from me. I’ll leave you with Andy Bull’s report, and please join Taha Hashim for the decider on Sunday. Goodnight!
Moeen Ali’s verdict
Very happy. I thought the way we batted in particular was outstanding, we killed the game off almost straight away. It just shows if we stick to the process… you don’t have to slog, they were proper shots. It was really impressive. I thought the seamers were outstanding as well.
It’s great for the series that it’s 3-3. It’s been a brilliant series and we’re looking forward to an exciting game on Sunday. Jos Buttler is feeling good, he’s been training a bit more, but I doubt we’ll risk him on Sunday.
Phil Salt is the player of the match
It’s nice timing, to do it when the series is in the balance, so I’m very happy. It’s always a challenge when you feel like you’re playing well but you’re getting out, so I’m very grateful for the backing I’ve had from my teammates and the management. It’s very clear the way they want me to play.
It was a very good toss to win, we shouldn’t ignore that. The dew made the ball come on to the bat nicely in the second innings. Even so, it was a startling performance from England, who won with five and a half overs to spare. Phil Salt will take the headlines, and quite right too, but the other batters all played their part with rapid twentysomethings.
ENGLAND WIN BY EIGHT WICKETS WITH 33 BALLS TO SPARE
14.3 overs: England 170-2 (Salt 87, Duckett 26) Phil Salt has the pleasure of hitting the winning runs. He finishes on 87 not out from 41 balls, an extraordinary innings that brings England level at 3-3 and sets up a decider on Sunday. Any chance we could make it a nine-match series instead?
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14th over: England 166-2 (Salt 85, Duckett 25) A short ball from Jamal is cuffed impatiently back over his head by Salt. That’s his 13th four to go with three sixes. Duckett ends the over with another boundary. I won’t bother describing. Jamal, who had such a memorable debut on Wednesday, has figures of 2-0-29-0. England need 4 to win.
13th over: England 155-2 (Salt 81, Duckett 20) Salt survives a stumping referral after missing a slap at Nawaz. It was good work from the debutant Haris but Salt had dragged his back foot into the crease.
Duckett moves England closer to victory with another terrific shot, this time a beautifully placed flick through midwicket for four. He has 20 from 13 balls, Salt 81 from 35.
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12th over: England 148-2 (Salt 79, Duckett 15) Salt misses a lusty – even by his standards – slog-sweep off Shadab. Actually it’s been given as runs, so maybe there was an edge. If so, it was an almost impossible chance for the keeper.
Duckett sweeps consecutive boundaries later in the over – the first reverse, the second orthodox. How the flip do you bowl to him.
11th over: England 135-2 (Salt 76, Duckett 5) Duckett survives an LBW appeal, and review, after missing a reverse sweep at Mohammad Nawaz. He was just outside the line. A quiet over – no fours, no sixes, nothin’. England need 35 from 54 balls. Pakistan need this.
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10th over: England 129-2 (Salt 74, Duckett 1) “Any idea of the shortest number of overs to achieve victory in a T20I,” begins John Starbuck, “when the first innings was 150+?”
From memory I think it was 12.5 overs, when Romania beat Greece in Sofia last year, but I’d have to check. (The shortest involving two Test-playing nations is 14.4, when South Africa walloped England in 2015-16. Look at Chris Jordan’s figures!)
WICKET! England 128-2 (Malan LBW b Shadab 26)
Dawid Malan gets an unplayable grubber from Shadab Khan. He reviewed the LBW decision, just in case it was missing leg. It wasn’t.
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9th over: England 128-1 (Salt 74, Malan 26) Not even haal can save Pakistan now. Salt crunches a slower ball from Dahani to the cover boundary and then top-edges a pull for four more. Since you asked – it was you who cursed him – four players have made T2oI centuries for England: Alex Hales, Dawid Malan, Liam Livingstone and Jos Buttler. Livingstone’s is the fastest at 42 balls. Salt has 74 from 27.
8th over: England 117-1 (Salt 65, Malan 24) Fair to say that Ladka (5.21pm) knows more about cricket than me. It was a good toss to win, no question, but this is a stunning batting performance from England.
Malan cover-drives consecutive, elegant boundaries off Shadab, then Salt pulls down the ground for four to move to 65 from 23 balls. What game is this we’re watching?
This is awesome to watch @englandcricket 👌👌👌
— Ben Stokes (@benstokes38) September 30, 2022
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7th over: England 102-1 (Salt 60, Malan 14) Salt smashes Aamer Jamal’s first ball to the cover boundary to move to 49, then pulls a single to reach a memorable half-century from just 19 balls. It’s England’s third fastest. He doesn’t come off that often, but when he does…
Malan continues this extraordinary runchase with a pristine extra cover-drive for four, then Salt pulls consecutive balls for four and six. Salt has 60 from 21 balls. “What’s going on?” pleads Wasim Akram in the commentary box. “Can someone explain this run-rate? Butch?”
It’s a Salt and battery.
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6th over: England 82-1 (Salt 45, Malan 9) Consecutive boundaries for Malan off Wasim, an edge followed by a clip through midwicket. England’s highest Powerplay score is 89, I think, against South Africa at the World T20 in 2016. They can’t quite beat that, but they’d have taken this half an hour ago.
5th over: England 74-1 (Salt 45, Malan 1) This is spectacular batting from Phil Salt. He swings Nawaz to cow corner, thumps him over wide mid-off and then launches consecutive deliveries down the ground for six and four. He has 45 from 17 balls! The required rate, which started at 8.5, has already dropped below 6.5.
4th over: England 55-1 (Salt 27, Malan 0) Excellent stuff from Shadab: five runs, one wicket.
WICKET! England 55-1 (Hales c Dahani b Shadab 27)
The legspinner Shadab Khan comes into the attack ahead of schedule – and he strikes with his fifth ball. Hales top-edges an almighty slog-sweep over his own shoulder, and Dahani runs round to take a comfortable catch. Hales goes for a brief but brutal 27: 12 balls, 4x4, 1x6.
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3rd over: England 50-0 (Salt 26, Hales 23) Fair to say that England have doubled down on their aggressive approach. Salt makes room to belt Mohammad Wasim’s first ball over mid-off for four; Hales smears a slower ball past midwicket for another, top-edges a pull over short fine leg and clouts the last ball past the diving mid-off. Three consecutive boundaries bring up the fifty partnership in the third over.
2nd over: England 33-0 (Salt 21, Hales 11) Shahnawaz Dawani’s first over has disappeared for 22! Salt drives his first ball through mid-off for four, a lovely shot, and pulls the second round the corner for six. He has gone off like a pacemaker again, and a single takes him to 21 from eight balls.
Hales gets his first boundary with a classy square drive, then launches a spectacular drive over extra cover for six. We thought the dew might be a factor, but I don’t think anybody thought England would be 33 for none after two overs.
1st over: England 11-0 (Salt 10, Hales 1) Dear me, Phil Salt is almost out to the first ball of the innings. He slices Mohammad Nawaz just wide of the diving short third man and away for four. He gets a more authentic boundary two balls later, whipping emphatically wide of mid-on. Three singles make it 11 from the over.
“G’day, Rob,” says Ladka. “I reckon England will chase this with change to spare. A bit of freedom and when this lineup fires, few contain it.”
I’m not sure – I think Pakistan are slight favourites.
20th over: Pakistan 169-6 (Babar 87 not out, Nawaz c Brook b Topley 12) Reece Topley’s final over has disappeared for 19.
Babar ramps the first ball for four, smokes the second over long on for six, then slices high over short third man for two. He punches his bat in frustration when he can only manage a leg-bye off the fourth delivery – but he’s a happier man when Nawaz lifts a huge six over wide mid-on.
Nawaz holes out off the last ball, but that’s a brilliant finish from Pakistan. Babar ends on 87 not out from 59 balls, another delightful innings, and England need 170 to win.
19th over: Pakistan 150-5 (Babar 75, Nawaz 6) Topley saves a couple of runs with a superb sprawling stop at cow corner. But there’s nothing anyone can do when Babar pulls a Curran slower ball sweetly for four. He puts the ‘pure’ in ‘pure genius’.
Curran’s last ball, another slower bouncer, is ducked by Nawaz. He ends a good night’s work with figures of 4-0-27-2.
18th over: Pakistan 141-5 (Babar 70, Nawaz 3) Topley’s third over is a gem, which yields just five runs.
17th over: Pakistan 136-5 (Babar 68, Nawaz 0) That was the last ball of the over. Willey finishes with figures of 4-0-32-2.
WICKET! Pakistan 136-5 (Asif c Topley b Willey 9)
Willey gets away with a high full toss to Babar, which should have been called no-ball. But he doesn’t get away with the next delivery, a lower full toss that is laced over extra cover for six. Glorious batting from Babar.
Willey ends his spell on a high with the wicket of Asif Ali, who uppercuts a slower bouncer to deep point. That’s a good breakthrough for England because he is a dangerous customer.
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16th over: Pakistan 126-4 (Babar 59, Asif 9) Asif pulls Gleeson over midwicket for four, then Babar launches him down the ground for six! That takes Babar to 3,000 T20I runs - he has reached the milestone in just 81 innings, which equals Virat Kohli’s record. The next best is Martin Guptill, who needed 101 innings.
Thirteen from the over, and Gleeson finishes with 4-0-39-1. England are facing another awkward runchase.
“Agree wholeheartedly, this series has been superb, full of Tapal Tea moments,” says Simon McMahon. “Credit to both sides, and David Gower too. Deserves to go to a decider on Sunday.”
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15th over: Pakistan 113-4 (Babar 51, Asif 3) Sam Curran is having another good night with the ball – his figures are 3-0-18-2.
WICKET! Pakistan 110-4 (Iftikhar c Brook b Curran 31)
Clever bowling from Sam Curran, a slower shorter ball that is clubbed straight to long on by Iftikhar. He made a very useful 21-ball 31, and here comes Asif Ali.
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14th over: Pakistan 108-3 (Babar 50, Iftikhar 30) Iftikhar slog sweeps Rashid for a huge six, bringing up the Pakistan hundred in the process. A single for Babar takes him to a masterful half-century from 41 balls, and Rashid finishes a frustrating spell with figures of 4-0-38-0.
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13th over: Pakistan 97-3 (Babar 48, Iftikhar 21) Gorgeous batting from Babar, who has so much time to pull Gleeson round thecorner for four. The placement was immaculate. Pakistan are doing this very well – they’re scoring off almost every delivery and hitting at least one boundary an over.
12th over: Pakistan 89-3 (Babar 42, Iftikhar 19) Iftikhar drives Rashid majestically over long-on for six. Rashid is quietly having a difficult series – average 47, economy rate 8.5 – although he is unlucky not to get a wicket when Iftikhar and Babar spoon consecutive deliveries in the air. That was a pretty good over from Rashid, and it went for 10.
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11th over: Pakistan 79-3 (Babar 40, Iftikhar 11) Iftikhar heaves a short ball from Willey through backward square leg for four. The usual singles make it a good over for Pakistan, nine from it. They’re on course for another competitive total, and that’s all their bowlers ever ask for.
10th over: Pakistan 70-3 (Babar 39, Iftikhar 5) It’s hard to know what a good score is, especially with Pakistan’s bowling attack and England’s recent batting form. Maybe 140? If so, Pakistan are halfway there. Ifikthar slugs a shortish delivery from Rashid to cow corner for four, a superbly paced shot. That aside it’s a pretty good over from Rashid.
9th over: Pakistan 63-3 (Babar 37, Iftikhar 0) Those short balls are dangerous on a pitch that looks a bit two-paced.
WICKET! Pakistan 62-3 (Haider c Duckett b Curran 18)
A useful wicket for England. Haider Ali fetches a short ball from Sam Curran towards cow corner, where Duckett runs round the boundary to take a good catch.
8th over: Pakistan 58-2 (Babar 33, Haider 17) Adil Rashid comes into the attack, or rather the defence. Haider Ali charges the fourth ball, doesn’t get close to the pitch, but wipes it over wide long on regardless. Ten from the over.
7th over: Pakistan 48-2 (Babar 31, Haider 9) The new bowler Sam Curran is pulled thrillingly through square leg for four by Babar. Whatever the format, he is the most charming batter to watch. And after scoring seven from his first 10 balls today, he has hit stroked 24 from the last 13.
6th over: Pakistan 40-2 (Babar 25, Haider 7) A run-out chance for England. Babar takes a quick single to mid-on and is short of his ground when Curran’s throw whistles past the stumps.
Haider helps a short ball from Gleeson round the corner for four, then pulls straight into the square-leg umpire Aleem Dar. Thankfully it hit him on the fleshy part of the thigh.
“Re: Brian Withington on Lord David of Gower (4th over),” begins Gareth Wilson, “at least we are spared KP saying something obvious then Saying. It. Again. Slower.”
5th over: Pakistan 32-2 (Babar 22, Haider 2) It took a little while, but Babar has got his eye in. He back cuts Topley beautifully to the fence, his third boundary in four balls, and steals a single off the last ball to move to 22 from 16 balls.
4th over: Pakistan 26-2 (Babar 17, Haider 1) Babar gets his first boundary, flicking Willey delightfully through midwicket, and adds another with a pull behind square. That’s much more Babartypical.
“Afternoon Rob,” says Brian Withington. “Who could possibly tire of David Gower demonstrating the fine art of proof by repeated assertion? How we have missed his inspired commentary.”
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WICKET! Pakistan 15-2 (Shan LBW b Willey 0)
Shan Masood goes for a duck. He missed a bread-and-butter work across the line at Willey and was given out LBW by Rashid Riaz. Shan reviewed, hoping it might have been high, but replays showed it was hitting the top of leg stump. Pakistan lose a wicket and a review.
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3rd over: Pakistan 14-1 (Babar 6, Shan 0) Shan Masood is the new batter.
WICKET! Pakistan 14-1 (Haris c Rashid b Gleeson 7)
Mohammad Haris gets off the mark with a swagger, clouting the new bowler Richard Gleeson back over his head for six. But he falls later in the over, steering a short ball straight to Rashid at short third man. It was good bowling from Gleeson, who followed Haris as he backed away.
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2nd over: Pakistan 5-0 (Babar 4, Haris 0) There was a soupcon of swing for Topley, so David Willey – always dangerous when the white ball moves in the air - is going to share the new ball. Babar mistimes a couple of attacking strokes, which suggests the pitch might not be the best, and there are just three runs from the over.
1st over: Pakistan 2-0 (Babar 1, Haris 0) Reece Topley starts the innings with a wide, but he soon finds his range and ends the over with five successive dot balls to the debutant Mohammad Haris. Haris looks a bit nervouis, as you’d expect, and misses a very ambitious reverse lap.
Here come the players. It’s a fresh pitch today, and there’s a new face – the 21-year-old debutant Mohammad Haris.
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Team news
Both teams make two changes. Shahnawaz Dahani and the debutant Mohammad Haris replace Haris Rauf and Mohammad Rizwan, who are rested.
England bring in Reece Topley and Richard Gleeson for Mark Wood and Chris Woakes. Still no sign of Jos Buttler, though it sounds like it’s just a precaution.
Pakistan Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Haris (wk), Shan Masood, Haider Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Asif Ali, Mohammad Nawaz, Shadab Khan, Aamer Jamal, Shahnawaz Dahani, Mohammad Wasim.
England Salt (wk), Hales, Malan, Duckett, Brook, Ali (c), Curran, Willey, Rashid, Gleeson, Topley.
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England have won the toss (again) and will bowl first (again)
“We have to chase well and win the game,” says their captain Moeen Ali. Babar Azam says he would have made the same decision.
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Our old friend Andy Bull has written some cracking stuff throughout this tour. Here he is on the series we would all love to see.
Preamble
Sometimes, you don’t know what you’ve got till you’ve got it. Things we can’t foresee enrich our lives in ways we can’t imagine: true love, The Sopranos, memory foam. Who knew, for example, that once you reach a certain age, the hitherto repellent IKEA catalogue contains nothing but dopamine? And who had any idea that a seven-match white-ball series, which sounds like a uniquely sadistic form of overkill, could be so goshdarn life-affirming?
In ODIs, England have been involved in some mind-numbing, spirit-crushing seven-match series. The list of results isn’t pretty: 1-6, 1-4*, 4-3, 1-6, 1-6, 2-5. Some of us are still in therapy over the 6-1 defeat in South Africa in 1995-96, which presaged a desperate World Cup campaign. But this, their first seven-match T20 series, has been an almost ceaseless joy on and off the field. Pakistan lead 3-2 after thrilling victories in the fourth and fifth games, and a win today would give them the series with a game to spare.
There’s a bigger picture – the World Cup starts on 16 October – but England could do without having their morale punctured by another defeat. While there are mitigating circumstances, their form has an end-of-an-era whiff about it. From 2019-21, England’s bilateral T20 series record was W7 D1 L1. If they lose today, their record for 2022 will be W0 D0 L4. The last time they lost four T20 series in a row was – pop quiz, hotshot – never.
The match starts at 3.30pm in London, 7.30pm in Karachi.
* Don’t you get wise with me, there was a tie and a no-result
