Venue Details & Pitch Report - Eden Gardens, Kolkata

Average First Innings Score at Kolkata in ODIs since 2011: 289

Batting First vs Batting Second at Kolkata in ODIs since 2011: Win Bat 1st - 75%, Win Bat 2nd - 25%

ENG-PAK Players in the top 10 leading run-scorers list in ODIs: None

ENG-PAK Players in the top 10 leading wicket-takers list in ODIs: None

Ground Dimensions: The venue has long straight boundaries of (76m) and short square boundaries (61m, 67m). ThirdMan-CowCorner (55m, 76m) and FineLeg-DeepExtraCover (58m, 73m).

Pitch Report: Eden Gardens is one of the best scoring venues in India and the flatness of the surface comes to the aid of the batters. So far in the World Cup, pacers have had success at this ground and the pitch tends to assist spin as the match progresses.

Predicted Playing XI - England vs Pakistan, Match 44, ICC Cricket World Cup 2023

England: Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler(C&WK), Harry Brook, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, David Willey, Adil Rashid, Gus Atkinson

       Bench: Liam Livingstone, Mark Wood, Reece Topley, Sam Curran

Pakistan: Fakhar Zaman, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam (C), Mohammad Rizwan (WK), Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammed Wasim, Usama Mir, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf 

       Bench: Imam ul Haq, Agha Salman, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Nawaz

Fantasy Notes (ENGLAND) - England vs Pakistan, Match 44, ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Prediction

STATS & NUMBERS

Relevant Numbers of England players vs Pakistan in ODIs:

PLAYERBAT INNSRUNSAVG/SR50s/100sBOWL INNSWICKETSBOWL AVG/ECO
Jos Buttler1252265/1511/3N/AN/AN/A
Moeen Ali1015531/910/0141345/5.1
Jonny Bairstow738054/1042/1N/AN/AN/A
Sam Curran       
Liam Livingstone       
Dawid Malan36834/881/0N/AN/AN/A
Adil Rashid    141645/6.1
Joe Root1577552/936/1N/AN/AN/A
Ben Stokes1143148/933/0   
Brydon Carse24343/830/03623/5.4
David Willey    91042/5.5
Chris Woakes58421/860/0133020/5.6
Mark Wood    71136/5.8
Harry Brook       
Gus Atkinson       

MATCHUPS

Ben Stokes vs Hasan Ali in ODIs: Outs - 5, Balls - 77, Avg/SR - 15/96

Jonny Bairstow vs Hasan Ali in ODIs: Outs - 2, Balls - 21, Avg/SR - 8.5/81

Jonny Bairstow vs Left Arm Pace in Powerplay (ODIs 2023): Inns - 8, Outs - 4, Balls - 39, Avg/SR - 7/77

Joe Root vs Left Arm Pace in Powerplay (ODIs 2023): Inns – 6, Outs - 4, Balls - 31, Avg/SR - 5/64

Joe Root vs Spin in ODIs in 2023: Inns - 7, Outs - 5, Balls - 136, Avg/SR - 24/89 

Points to Consider

  • Jos Buttler in WC23: Inns - 8, Runs - 111, Avg/SR - 14/89, 50s/100s - 0/0. Jonny Bairstow in WC23: Inns - 8, Runs - 156, Avg/SR - 19/86, 50s/100s - 1/0. The two English batters have been underwhelming with their batting performances and they are currently selected in less than 30% of the teams. 
  • Both batters have good numbers against Pakistan (check table) - at the same time, Bairstow has issues against left-arm pace early on (check matchups) while Buttler just has not been able to get going in any of the matches so far. 
  • Just like Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root has been poor against left-arm pace in the powerplay, and with Shaheen in the opposition, there is a threat to his fantasy potential. However, a player of his quality cannot be ignored especially with a selection of just 20%. Back him as a differential especially if England bats first.
  • Chris Woakes has picked up an average of over 2 wickets per game in ODIs against Pakistan. After a woeful start to the tournament, he has made a turnaround in the last 3 matches, with both the bat and the ball. Consider trying him as a differential C/VC especially if he bowls under lights where we might see assistance for the new ball pacers.

Fantasy Notes (PAKISTAN) - England vs Pakistan, Match 44, ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Prediction

STATS & NUMBERS

Relevant Numbers of Pakistan players in ODIs against England:

PLAYERBAT INNSRUNSAVG/SR50s/100sBOWL INNSWICKETSBOWL AVG/ECO
Babar Azam1981648/975/2N/AN/AN/A
Mohammad Rizwan816123/921/0N/AN/AN/A
Fakhar Zaman1035636/892/1N/AN/AN/A
Imam-ul-Haq833556/841/1N/AN/AN/A
Iftikhar Ahmed284/260/021 
Agha Salman       
Shadab Khan46120/900/05639/5.5
Mohammad Nawaz46622/880/04289/5.9
Saud Shakeel36432/691/0N/AN/AN/A
Shaheen Afridi    6754/7.2
Haris Rauf    3624/6.7
Mohammad Wasim       
Abdullah Shafique       
Hasan Ali119812/1030/0132038/6.4
Usama Mir       

MATCHUPS

Fakhar Zaman vs Chris Woakes in ODIs: Outs - 3, Runs - 63, Balls - 47, Avg/SR - 21/134; vs Moeen Ali (all T20s): Outs - 4, Balls - 22, Avg/SR - 4/87.

Mohammad Rizwan vs Wrist Spin in 2023 ODIs: Outs - 5, Runs - 98, Balls - 130, Avg/SR - 20/75

Iftikhar Ahmed vs Wrist Spin in 2023 ODIs: Outs - 4, Runs - 72, Balls - 88, Avg/SR - 18/81

Points to Consider

  • Pakistan while not mathematically out of contention for the semi-finals, is facing a near-impossible task. If Pakistan bats first, they need to win by at least 287 runs OR if they are chasing and dismiss England for 100 runs, they need to chase down the score in 2.3 overs.
  • Fakhar Zaman will face the new ball threat of Chris Woakes in the powerplay especially in the second innings, assuming the surface remains the same as the previous matches where we have seen good assistance for pacers under lights, in the second innings. 
  • If Pakistan bats first, they will need a huge score (>400) to have any hope of qualifying, and he along with Iftikhar Ahmed will be key, being their most attacking batters.
  • Pakistan's key batters Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan's weakness is wrist spin and Adil Rashid will be expected to play a crucial role, especially in the second innings due to scoreboard pressure. He is England's highest wicket-taker in World Cup 2023. Adil Rashid in WC23: Inns - 8, Wickets - 13, Avg/Eco - 27.5/5.1
  • Consider backing Haris Rauf as a differential bowler with a selection of just 34%. Opponents England have not been in the best of form with the bat and while the Pakistan pacer has been expensive with the ball, he still has a good potential to pick up wickets.

Fantasy XI - England vs Pakistan, Match 44, ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Prediction

WK: Mohammad Rizwan

BAT: Babar Azam, Dawid Malan, Ben Stokes, Fakhar Zaman

AR: Chris Woakes

BOWL: Shaheen Afridi, David Willey, Adil Rashid, Mohammad Wasim, Haris Rauf

C/VC: Babar Azam, Dawid Malan

Differentials: Jonny Bairstow (20%), Joe Root (21%), Iftikhar Ahmed (20%)

C/VC Alternatives: Shaheen Afridi, Chris Woakes, Ben Stokes

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Stats Credit: Cricinfo, Cricmetric

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