Pakistan vs England 2016, One-off T20I at Manchester: Likely XI for England

England get set to face the visiting Pakistan side one final time in this tour, as this time, they play a T20I at the Old Trafford in Manchester on Wednesday.

England, who are the runners up of the ICC world T20 2016, would be the favourites to win this tie, especially being the home team, and their glorious ODI performance © Getty Images

Following a thrilling 2-2 draw in the four-Test series, and an impressive 4-1 win in the five-match One-Day International (ODI) series, hosts England get set to face the visiting Pakistan side one final time in this tour, as this time, they clash off in the shortest format of the game, the Twenty20 (T20) format, when they play a T20I at the Old Trafford in Manchester on Wednesday. England, who are the runners up of the ICC world T20 2016, would be the favourites to win this tie, especially being the home team, and their glorious ODI performance, while Pakistan would aim to turn things around, with T20 being a different form of the game. Meanwhile, Ayush Gupta predicts the likely XI the hosts can field on Wednesday. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD:Pakistan vs England 2016, One-off T20I at Manchester

Top order: The top order is certain to begin with the likes of explosive opener Alex Hales and Jason Roy, who can get going right from the start and provide England the perfect start, owing to their explosive batting. At No. 3, it has to be Joe Root, who has been in fine form, be it any format, and considering his present form, it would just be sensational to watch him bat at the third spot, and score runs in a flurry. Although Hales has not been in as good form as he was earlier, and has also been shaky in the ODI series, barring the 4th ODI, where he score a record 171. Nevertheless, being explosive in nature, he is all set to get a chance, while Roy too has been in a fair form, and if once get going, there is certainly no stopping him, thus completing a bright top order.

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Middle order: The order has to start with the skipper, as Eoin Morgan completely fits in the No. 4 spot. Morgan is yet to play a big innings in this format of the game, and considering Pakistan’s woeful limited-overs format, this will be the perfect platform for the skipper to fire and play an ideal innings, thus scoring some runs for England and himself as well. At No. 5, it is most likely to be Sam Billings, who is again a reliable middle order batsman, and is a perfect choice in the T20 side, as Morgan will hardly risk him out. He is certain to be followed by Jos Buttler at No. 6, as he has been batting in the position for quite long, and perfectly fits the spot, while he also has had a decent run in the team. However, a big knock is yet to come from him. At No. 7, it has to be Ben Stokes, who is arguably one of the greatest all-rounders in the present English side, and is certain to play an impact in the game. However, Morgan could also opt for David Willey as an all-rounder, as he has been fairly impressive on the field, and is a dependable all-rounder again, especially in the T20s. PAK vs ENG, Team Review: Hosts’ clinical performance sends out strong signal

Bowling attack: The attack is most certain to start with Chirs Jordan, who has been in brilliant form in this format of the game, especially since the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2016, and apart from the ball, he has had a pretty interesting season with the bat as well, which adds extra fire power to the English batting, and would be too tempting for Morgan to include him in the playing XI. At No. 9, it has to be Liam Plunkett, who is one of the bowling all-rounders in the side, and England would want to have most runs on the board, so they would aim to strengthen their batting line-up as far as possible. At No. 10, it has to be the likes of England’s star spinner at present Adil Rashid, who has been a hit in the English side, and has been in good form throughout the tour, as he looks to continue his good run with the ball, and Old Trafford being slightly on the slower side, Rashid is most likely to make an impact with the spin. The attacks ends with one of the rising stars in England’s fast bowling department, Mark Wood, who has been in sensational form with the ball, as he put up a blond performance in the Test and the ODI series against Pakistan, and would be looking to continue his good run in the T20 as well. PAK vs ENG 2016: PAK marks out of 10 in ODIs

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England’s likely XI for T20I vs Pakistan: Alex Hales, Jason Roy, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes/David Willey, Chris Jordan, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood.