England have one more game of international cricket, Wednesday's (September 7) o

ne-off Twenty20 International (T20I) against Pakistan at Old Trafford before the
y can throw their feet up and reflect on what has largely been a fruitful summer
of cricket. Plans for the winter tours of Bangladesh and India are already in a
n advanced stage with the team scheduled for their sub-continental sojourn in li
ttle over two weeks from now. A defeat in the T20I will do little to disparage t
heir ever-rising limited-overs stocks but victory would certainly serve as the c
herry on top of the scrumptious cake for the English cricket patrons before Prem
ier League football dominates their households after the international break.
Eoin Morgan remains undecided on his participation in the Bangladesh tour but is
steadfast in his desire for his shorter format team to go from strength to stre
ngth. Having squandered a rare opportunity to inflict an One Day International (
ODI) series whitewash on Pakistan in Cardiff last week, the England skipper is e
ager to close out the season with a win in the lone T20I. It is this new-found a
llegiance towards white-ball cricket and the possibility of potentially dominati
ng the format, that's forced selectors into naming a full-strength squad for wha
t is, in the bigger picture, a relatively insignificant game.
Pakistan, on the other hand, find that been on the road in the unfamiliar climes
of the British summer for a little over two months now. Their herculean efforts
to draw the Test series came up with a price for they folded rather meekly in t
he ensuing five-match ODI series. But even in the last leg of an emotionally-dra
ining campaign lies an opportunity for new beginnings. Sarfraz Ahmed takes over
as captain of the T20I side, hoping to impress his own adventurism and propensit
y for daredevilry. The team though, still retains the crux of the outfit that tu
rned out under Shahid Afridi for the World T20. Pakistan are the top-ranked Test
team. Their push up the T20I rankings starts now.