England v Pakistan ODI series: Five players to watch out for

Following what was an epic battle for supremacy in the Test series, Pakistan and England will now battle for the bragging rights in the upcoming ODI series that will begin on the 24th of August. Although Pakistan may well be the best Test team in the world at the moment, it is clear that their One-Day and T20I teams are on the verge of being quite shambolic. In spite of a 1-0 win in the ODI series against Ireland, it is clear that Pakistan will have to play out of their skin to secure a win in the limited-overs’ series.

1. Sharjeel Khan

The left-handed opening batsman has not played an awful lot of international cricket for Pakistan. However, in his first match in the first ODI of the series against Ireland at Malahide, Sharjeel stole headlines with a wonderfully compiled 152 of just 85 deliveries. While that is certainly a feat in itself, it ensures that Sharjeel has indeed cemented his place in the side.

Sharjeel Khan exudes the old-fashioned opening batsman, something that has not been seen since the days of Saeed Anwar, Sourav Ganguly, Sanath Jayasuriya, and perhaps even Adam Gilchrist for that matter. His blast while opening the innings, if consistent, could very well see him become Pakistan’s primary opener in the years to come.

In the context of the series, however, it is clear that Sharjeel will have an important role to play. He will be tasked with laying the foundations for the innings and will be expected to score more tons like the one against Ireland.