Nottingham: England captain Eoin Morgan won the toss and decided to bowl first as he prepared to unleash fast bowler Mark Wood against Pakistan in a World Cup match at Trent Bridge Monday.
Wood was the only change to the England side that thrashed South Africa by 104 runs in the tournament opener at the Oval, with the Durham quick recalled in place of fellow paceman Liam Plunkett.
Pakistan collapsed to 105 all out against the West Indies, with several batsmen struggling against aggressive short-pitched bowling.
By recalling Wood, who like the in-form Jofra Archer is capable of bowling at speeds of 90 mph plus, England had clearly decided to see if they were still vulnerable to the bouncer.
Pakistan, who recently lost 4-0 to England in a one-day international series, recalled batsmen Asif Ali and Shoaib Malik, with Haris Sohail and Imad Wasim dropped.
This was Asif’s first match since the death of his 19-month old daughter Dua Fatima, who had been receiving cancer treatment in the United States.
Teams
England: Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan (capt), Jos Buttler (wkt), Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Adil Rashid, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood
Pakistan: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam, Mohammad Hafeez, Sarfaraz Ahmed (capt/wkt), Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali, Shadab Khan, Hasan Ali, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Amir
Umpires: Marais Erasmus (RSA), S Ravi (IND)
TV umpire: Ruchira Palliyaguruge (SRI)
Match referee: Jeff Crowe (NZL)
AFP
