England, Pakistan second ODI today
After relentless rain forced the abandonment of the first one-day international, England will be looking for a more favourable result as they take on Pakistan in the second ODI today in Southampton.
Asking Pakistan to bat first turned out to be the right decision as the hosts made early in-roads before the rain gods decided to intervene.
Jofra Archer got a short but effective spell in and picked up another ODI wicket in form of Fakhar Zaman to register figures of one for six in four overs.
Pakistan will not be too disappointed with how things unfolded on Wednesday considering their shaky start.
They lost Fakhar Zaman and Babar Azam, cheaply accumulating just 80 in 19 overs. Although Imam-ulHaq managed to score some handy runs, they will need more than just a competitive total to challenge the strong English batting line-up in the games to follow.
The weather does not look as bleak as it was in the first ODI. For the most part, it is expected to be sunny and they should be able to get a full game in.
The last ODI played here
was in September 2017, when England easily chased West Indies’ 288 with 12 overs to spare, all thanks to the blistering Bairstow.