England captain Jos Buttler is recovering from a calf injury and is expected to play in only one or two games toward the end of the series. Moeen Ali will lead the side in his absence.
Moeen Ali returns to his roots in Pakistan to lead England in a seven-match series as both nations fine-tune for next month’s T20 World Cup. The Pakistan vs England first T20I will be telecast live in India on Sony Sports Channels from 8 PM IST. (More Cricket News)
England's first tour to Pakistan since 2005 starts in Karachi, which will host four games. The remaining three will be played in Lahore from September 28-October 2. Buttler is with the squad and has been undergoing rehabilitation.
Ali said the recurring of the injury during the Hundred back home has forced the England captain to be extra careful. At least eight members of the England squad like Ali himself, Harry Brook, Alex Hales and Phil Salt have experience playing in Pakistan for various franchises in the Pakistan Super League.
That experience could come in handy for an England team that is without its key T20 World Cup player Ben Stokes. Fast bowlers Mark Wood and Chris Woakes are returning to the team after being sidelined for most of the summer because of injuries.
Jonny Bairstow was ruled out of the T20 World Cup due to freak injury while playing golf while out-of-form Jason Roy was dropped both for the tour of Pakistan and the T20 World Cup.
Pakistan will be hoping its captain Babar Azam returns to form after a below-par Asia Cup where he scored only 68 runs in six games. Key players Fakhar Zaman and fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi will miss the series because of knee injuries.
Babar's opening partner Mohammad Rizwan finished as the top run-getter of the Asia Cup and also rose to the No. 1-ranked batter in T20 rankings. However, Rizwan was often criticized for playing too many dot balls — especially during the first six overs of batting powerplay — after Babar struggled in the Asia Cup.
Pakistan are expected to experiment with its batting lineup with all eyes on left-handed Shan Masood, who got his maiden call-up after scoring heavily in England's domestic league — Blast — this season and also in the PSL and the National T20 Cup.
In the absence of Afridi, Pakistan fast bowlers did well in the Asia Cup with young Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf and Mohammad Hasnain constantly bowling a brisk pace. Fast bowler Mohammad Wasim Jr. is also back in the T20 fold after missing the Asia Cup because of side strain.
The two teams have met 21 times in the shortest format of the game. England lead Pakistan 14-6 in the head-to-head record. There was one no result. England have won the last two meetings.
Sony Sports Network has the broadcast rights for the Pakistan vs England white-ball series in India. Sony Sports channels will live telecast the Pakistan vs England first T20I in India. Live streaming of PAK vs ENG, first T20I will be available on SonyLIV app.
Pakistan: Babar Azam (c), Shadab Khan (vc), Aamir Jamal, Abrar Ahmed, Asif Ali, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Junior, Naseem Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani, Shan Masood and Usman Qadir.
England: Jos Buttler (c & wk), Moeen Ali (vc), Harry Brook, Jordan Cox (wk), Sam Curran, Liam Dawson, Ben Duckett, Richard Gleeson, Alex Hales, Tom Helm, Will Jacks, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Olly Stone, Reece Topley, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood, Luke Wood.