Pakistan vs England 2nd ODI Preview: Prediction, Probable XIs & Key Battles
It is the heavyweight clash the tri-series has been waiting for. Today, at 1:00 pm PKT in Rawalpindi, Pakistan meet England in the second ODI of the Pakistan ODI Tri-Series 2026 — and this one has everything. The hosts are flying after Sunday's 37-run win over Sri Lanka. England arrive with three straight bilateral ODI series wins behind them and a captain who says his side wants to "win in any conditions against any opposition." Something has to give.
For England, this is the examination that matters. Harry Brook's young white-ball unit has been trending upward for six to eight months, but Pakistan in Pakistan — in front of a ferocious Rawalpindi crowd, against a new-ball attack led by Shaheen Afridi — is a challenge Brook himself admits they "probably haven't quite faced yet as an ODI side." England are also chasing history: they have not enjoyed one-day success in Pakistan since the famous 1987-88 tour.
Match Details
Head-to-Head: England Hold the Edge
The ledger favours England decisively — 57 wins to Pakistan's 32 across 92 ODIs, with three no-results — and England have won the last four meetings between the sides, most recently at Eden Gardens during the 2023 World Cup. But context cuts both ways: Pakistan's recent form guide (WWLWL, most-recent first) includes the opening tri-series win, while England (WLWWW) arrive battle-hardened. And Brook knows the history he is fighting: "If he can lead England to a first one-day success in Pakistan since 1987-88," noted one preview, "it will only bolster his status further."
"Pakistan are a very strong side... The tri-series provides another valuable opportunity for our ODI squad to test themselves against quality opposition in different conditions." — Brendon McCullum, England white-ball coach, Rawalpindi press conference
Team News: England's Selection Puzzles
England are without two pillars. Jos Buttler misses the tour with a hamstring injury picked up against Sri Lanka at Headingley — cruel timing after he became the first England batter to reach 10,000 international white-ball runs last month. Jofra Archer has been rested to manage his workload, and Jacob Bethell is also sidelined. The absences open doors: Adil Rashid returns from a hand injury and Sam Curran from a groin problem, while Glamorgan leg-spinner Mason Crane — uncapped in ODIs — earns his first international call-up in nearly nine years, after his solitary Test appearance in the 2017-18 Ashes in Sydney. Sussex all-rounders James Coles and Henry Crocombe have also been called up, and seamer Sonny Baker has been drafted in for Archer, with his reverse-swing and death-over yorkers under the spotlight.
Pakistan could welcome back Shadab Khan and Sufyan Moqim, who missed Sunday's opener through illness. Otherwise, there is little reason to tinker with a winning XI: Fakhar Zaman, Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Saad Baig (wk), Hasan Nawaz, Salman Agha, Arafat Minhas, Faheem Ashraf, and the pace trio of Shaheen Shah Afridi (c), Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf.
Three Players in the Spotlight
Salman Agha (Pakistan). Few cricketers have ridden a wilder rollercoaster. In recent months he deputised as Test captain at Headingley, was dropped for the second Test, sent home before the third (and answered with a domestic triple-hundred), was stripped of the T20I captaincy and omitted from the Sri Lanka squad. His reply, back in his favourite format on Sunday: a hundred off 82 balls, finishing 107 not out off 90, to set up the win. Form is temporary; redemption arcs are forever.
Jordan Cox (England). Impressive batting at No. 3 in the Test series against Pakistan, then parachuted into the ODI side for the final game against Sri Lanka. With Buttler absent for this tour and the trip to Australia that follows, Cox gets the gloves and a middle-order audition with the World Cup "coming down the track" — the definition of a career-shaping month.
Harry Brook (England). The captain carries happy Pakistani memories: Lahore Qalandars in the 2022 PSL, then 468 runs in the three-Test series later that year. After last year's Ashes fallout, he says he has "learnt a lot as a captain" and wants to be "the man England fans and the team rely on." A series win here would say it louder than any quote.
Five Battles That Will Decide It
- New ball vs England's top order. Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah with the white ball in Rawalpindi, under lights, against Duckett and Banton — the first ten overs could decide the game.
- Rashid's match-up vs Pakistan's right-handers. With Archer rested, how McCullum uses the returning Adil Rashid against Pakistan's right-heavy top order is the key tactical call.
- Salman Agha's second act. After Sunday's hundred, England's analysts have the file. Great players announce themselves twice.
- Death overs: Baker vs Pakistan's finishers. Sonny Baker's reverse-swing and yorkers at the death against Hasan Nawaz and Faheem Ashraf — the tri-series' most intriguing unknown.
- Brook vs the crowd. Rawalpindi will be loud, partisan and relentless. The captain's temperament under that pressure is part of his own redemption story.
Prediction
England's winning streak in this fixture and their deeper recent ODI form make them slight favourites — but Pakistan at home, with this pace attack and this crowd, are live underdogs. Expect a high-scoring thriller that goes deep. For ball-by-ball coverage, follow the official match preview at ESPNcricinfo's PAK vs ENG match centre, and read our full tournament guide before the toss.