T20 World Cup Final preview: England aiming to become historic double world champions

The iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) will play host to this year’s edition of the T20 World Cup final down under, with England locking horns with Pakistan on Sunday.

Jos Buttler’s side will be considered slight favourites after thrashing pre-tournament favourites India in the semi-finals, but never discount this unpredictable but fiercely talented Pakistan side.

We preview all the action below.

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Pakistan v England – Sunday 08:00 GMT

Pakistan fans will scarcely believe their side has made it this far in the competition, following two crushing defeats to Zimbabwe and rivals India in their opening two Super 12 fixtures. Albeit slightly aided by South Africa’s shock loss to the Netherlands, Babar Azam’s side deserve credit for picking themselves up and winning their remaining Group 2 games, including a 33-run victory over the Proteas last Thursday.

Their comprehensive triumph over last year’s finalists New Zealand in the semi-finals was typical Pakistan – ferocious bowling in the powerplay, dynamism in the field, and supreme quality in their opening batting partnership to set the foundations for victory. That opening duo of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan have justifiably been touted as the world’s best, and England will have to disrupt the pair’s momentum if they are to restrict Pakistan’s flow of runs.

Pakistan will start the contest as slight 13/10 underdogs – perhaps representative of England’s recent 4-3 series victory over the Men in Green in September. That series, however, displayed that Pakistan are more than capable of beating this England side. You feel the toss will be crucial here.

As alluded to, Pakistan’s hopes will likely hang on their top order firing, with Rizwan and Babar 9/4 and 12/5 respectively to be their side’s top run scorer. Meanwhile, the return of Shaheen Afridi has revitalised Pakistan’s bowling attack, and the left-arm seamer is 5/2 to take the most wickets for his side. Also keep an eye out for leg-spinner Shadab Khan (10/3) on these big MCG boundaries, as another player from this Pakistan squad who has had a brilliant tournament so far.

England continue to be one of the most destructive and well-drilled white-ball sides in world cricket, but even they could not have predicted the scale of their breathtaking 10-wicket victory over India on Thursday. Jos Buttler’s side will become the first team to be crowned double world champions (ODI & T20) if they win Sunday’s final, and are odds-on at 8/13 to achieve exactly that.

Their shock defeat to Ireland in the Super 12s phase seems a long time ago now, and with impressive wins against New Zealand and Afghanistan to back up their demolition of India, you’d be brave to bet against England in this seismic encounter.

Captain Buttler finds himself in terrific form and can be backed at 5/2 to be his side’s top run scorer on the day. Chris Jordan picked up three wickets against India but may not feature on Sunday if Mark Wood is back to full fitness, so having a punt on Chris Woakes (7/2) to claim the most scalps could be a profitable move.

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