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Seamers picked up all 23 wickets to fall on the opening day of the Group A match between Baroda and Bengal in Lahli. Baroda, who were dismissed for 97 in the first innings, finished the day with a lead of 84 runs after seamer Atit Sheth’s 7 for 36 routed Bengal for 76.Bengal grabbed the early advantage through Ashok Dinda’s 6 for 45. Baroda’s top score in the first innings was 17, from opener Aditya Waghmode. Only three other batsmen scored in double-figures, all of them making 13. Sudip Chaterjee top-scored for Bengal with 37, playing a lone hand as the side slumped from 25 for 1 to 52 for 8 within 14 overs. Six wickets in this period fell to Sheth, who had earlier dismissed opener Abhimanyu Easwaran in the second over.Mukesh Kumar and Amit Kuila, who had taken four wickets between them in the first innings, then quickly dismantled Baroda’s top order in the second innings before Kedar Devdhar stabilized the side with 34 not out. They finished the day at 63 for 3.Opener Priyank Panchal’s eighth first-class hundred led Gujarat to 246 for 3 at stumps against Mumbai in Hubli. Panchal and his opening partner Samit Gohel gave the side a strong start after Gujarat opted to bat, with a partnership of 172 runs. Gujarat lost Gohel, Bhargav Merai and Parthiv Patel quickly before Panchal added an unbeaten 43-run partnership for the fourth wicket with Manpreet Juneja. Panchal remained not out on 122 off 256 balls with 17 fours.Mumbai used eight bowlers but the only ones to get wickets were Vishal Dabholkar, who struck in successive overs, and Aditya Dhumal.File photo – Gurkeerat Singh led Punjab after Harbhajan Singh missed the game due to personal reasons•BCCI

Railways’ batsmen, particularly Nitin Bhille, dominated the first day against Madhya Pradesh in Delhi, taking their score to 249 for 2 at stumps. Bhille was unbeaten on 102, his third first-class century, while opener Saurabh Wakaskar and Arindam Ghosh scored 62 and 61 not out respectively. Wakaskar and Shivakant Shukla had added 50 for the first wicket, before Bhille and Wakaskar put on 67 for the second wicket. Bhille and Ghosh then added 132 runs for the unbroken third-wicket partnership. Offspinner Saransh Jain and left-arm spinner Ankit Sharma took the only two wickets to fall on the day.Three wickets from seamer K Vignesh, including two in one over – the 32nd of the innings, helped Tamil Nadu claw back and limit Punjab to 241 for 6 in Nagpur. Punjab’s openers had moved on to 97 for 0 in the 29th over before they lost three quick wickets for 10 runs. Vignesh dismissed Manan Vohra for 73 off the second ball of the 32nd over and sent back Mandeep Singh four balls later. Punjab recovered briefly through a 53-run partnership between Uday Kaul and Gurkeerat Singh, who led Punjab after Harbhajan Singh missed the game due to personal reasons. Tamil Nadu, however, reigned them in with two quick wickets before Vignesh contributed another one, through a run-out, which sent back Kaul for 56.

Essex have added Neil Wagner to their ranks for 2017 as they look to compete on their return to Division One. Wagner will fill the main overseas role for the first half of the season, playing Championship and 50-over cricket, before the arrival of Mohammad Amir.Wagner, the New Zealand left-armer, had a successful spell at Lancashire last season, helping them to briefly top the table as he picked up 32 wickets at 29.28. He will add experience to Essex’s attack after the retirements of Graham Napier and David Masters earlier this year.”I really enjoyed my time in England with Lancashire last season, but I am excited about linking up with Essex and building on the team’s success in 2016,” Wagner said. “I want to bring my experience to the team and help us win games. I hope to help the squad get off to a good start in both competitions.”Wagner, who only plays Tests for New Zealand, is expected to be available for all of the Royal London Cup group stage and up to eight Championship matches, depending on when Amir joins up with Essex after the Champions Trophy.Chris Silverwood, the head coach, had been looking to bolster his pace-bowling stocks after losing Napier and Masters, who took 103 wickets between them as Essex claimed the Division Two title. Jamie Porter, 23, has an impressive record but 2017 will be his first taste of Division One cricket, while Essex will hope Matthew Quinn and Matt Dixon continue to develop.”Neil will bring vast experience at the highest level to the club, as well as a skill set that will be valuable in the opening months of the season,” Silverwood said. “He performed excellently for Lancashire last year and is also useful with the bat lower down the order. Hopefully he can help us hit the ground running in 2017.”

West Indies Under-19 held off Kent by 28 runs in a low-scoring contest at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium to record their first win of the Regional Super50. Sent in to bat, West Indies Under-19 were bowled out for 155 in 46.3 overs. They then spun out Kent for 127 in just 34 overs, with 16-year old left-arm spinner Joshua Bishop taking 4 for 44.Kent were 76 for 2 before Bishop ripped through the middle order. He first dismissed Darren Stevens for 18 in the 18th over, before striking thrice in the 22nd over. Then off the next, Bhaskar Yadram took the first of his three wickets by bowling Matt Coles for a duck, as Kent lost four for three runs to slide from 92 for 3 to 95 for 7.Captain Sam Northeast, who was at the non-striker’s end throughout the mayhem, tried to weather the storm, making 37 before he was ninth man out to Keemo Paul. Yadram then removed tailender Ivan Thomas to end the match with figures of 3 for 6 in five overs, clinching an improbable win.A 59-run second-wicket partnership between Matthew Patrick and Yadram produced the bulk of the runs for West Indies Under-19. Patrick top-scored with 45 off 79 balls while Yadram’s 29 wound up being the third highest total in the match to go along with his three wickets later on in a solid all-round performance.Trinidad & Tobago produced a tremendous fightback to win a thriller by 11 runs over Leeward Islands at Coolidge. Defending 226, they appeared well out of the game after a 115-run opening stand by Leewards captain Kieran Powell and Montcin Hodge. But the wicket of Powell in the 27th over, stumped after being unable to reach a ball dragged wider outside off stump by left-arm spinner Khary Pierre, sparked a slide which resulted in Leewards losing all ten wickets for 100 runs and slump to their first loss of the tournament.Pierre struck in the 31st and 35th overs in identical fashion to remove Nkrumah Bonner and Marlon Samuels, both batsmen skipping down the track to clear mid-on, only to miscue them to Rayad Emrit at long-off. Emrit then struck a crucial blow to remove Hodge for 82, producing an edge behind to Denesh Ramdin on a failed attempt to guide a single to third man. Only two other batsmen made double-digits with 16 extras winding up as the next best contribution outside of the openers.Pierre was named named Man of the Match after finishing with 4 for 40. He induced a leading edge from Jahmar Hamilton for his fourth , and concluded his day with another fine moment at the end of the 46th over, running out Gavin Tonge from long-on with a relay to Ramdin for the ninth wicket with 20 required to win. Shannon Gabriel defeated Jason Campbell’s heave across the line in the 49th over to end the match.Campbell’s efforts with the ball went in vain after he had set up the dramatic second innings, taking 5 for 37 with his left-arm spin in the first innings. Nicholas Alexis made 50 at No. 3 for T&T but Imran Khan’s 45 not out at No. 6 ensured they batted through the 50 overs. Roger Primus fell in the 39th over to make it 151 for 6 and Khan shepherded T&T’s long tail through the final 11 overs before they ended on 226 for 9, which ended up being just enough to secure their third win, putting them just a bonus point behind Leewards for the top spot in Group A.

The Pakistan Super League (PSL) has come and gone – for Misbah-ul-Haq at least – but no decision has emerged on the Pakistan Test captain’s future in the game, or at least a decision he is willing to share publicly.On Wednesday night in Sharjah, after the defending champions Islamabad United were knocked out by Karachi Kings, Misbah said he was planning to meet the board chairman Shaharyar Khan upon his return to Pakistan to let him know about his future plans.Questions about his future have become a permanent feature at Misbah’s press events these days, though they have increased since the Test series defeat in Australia. He was even asked about it by Ramiz Raja in Sharjah at the post-match ceremony following his side’s exit.He has been resolutely non-committal in his responses: before the PSL, he told ESPNcricinfo he would take a call after seeing how he fares in the tournament; during it, he told ESPNcricinfo he was likely to go on Pakistan’s next assignment, a tour of the Caribbean, where they are yet to win a Test series.After Islamabad’s defeat, he chuckled when the first question on the subject came up. He was asked about comments he had made in which he suggested he could go to the Caribbean as a player and not as captain.”I don’t understand what you want to hear from me,” he said. “I was asked whether I would go as a player or as a captain and this decision is for the cricket board. I have to decide whether I want to play or not, but, obviously, the final authority is always the cricket board on who will or won’t be captain.”Part of what will no doubt form any decision is his form. He began the PSL well, with an unbeaten 61 against Lahore in Dubai, but has since trailed off with a series of low scores with low strike rates.On Wednesday, he was bowled by an Imad Wasim delivery that skidded through his defence. And he admitted afterwards that his lack of runs had “made a difference” to Islamabad’s campaign. “It is important to perform in such pressure situations. When, as a senior player you don’t contribute, you have pressure on you, on the team.”The words more or less echo those he had been saying while on duty for Pakistan over the last few months: he averaged 15 in four Tests across New Zealand and Australia, and just over 26 if you include the three Tests against West Indies in the UAE just before that.Given his mode of operation, it is unlikely Shaharyar will make the first move. He has left it to Misbah to inform him of the decision. “I want to decide soon,” Misbah said. “I am very happy that the chairman has given me this honour that he has left it to me to decide. I am honoured by that. Obviously, I will tell him sooner rather than later because there’s not much time now [to the West Indies tour].”I will now go to Pakistan and speak to the chairman and tell him whatever my final decision is.”

Batting allrounder Maddy Green has become the third New Zealand women player sidelined due to an injured hand this season. Australia, too, saw an injury in their team as vice-captain Alex Blackwell suffered a minor hamstring strain during Wednesday’s loss in the third T20I in Adelaide. Although she was not ruled out of the forthcoming three ODIs against New Zealand, batsman Rachael Haynes was added to the squad as cover. Allrounder Ellyse Perry was also returning from a hamstring injury she had picked up in the Women’s BBL.”We expect both Alex and Ellyse to feature throughout the upcoming series against New Zealand. However we want to ensure both players are 100% fit on their return,” national selector Shawn Flegler said.Green joined allrounder Sophie Devine, with a dislocated thumb, and offspinner Leigh Kasperek, who had suffered multiple fractures on her left little finger only a week ago, on the injury list. Green was “anticipated” to be in contention for the Women’s World Cup in June, a New Zealand Cricket release said. She broke her left thumb while taking the catch to dismiss Amanda-Jade Wellington during New Zealand’s 47-run win in the third T20I. Offspinning allrounder Anna Peterson joined the New Zealand squad in place of Kasperek for the ODIs at home while a replacement for Green has not been named yet.Peterson, meanwhile, comes on the back of a hat-trick in the second T20I against Australia and an impressive run with the bat for Auckland in the domestic one-dayers and T20s. Peterson had toured Australia too as a late replacement for Devine.The three-ODI series will start in Auckland on Sunday, followed by the second and third matches in Mount Maunganui on March 2 and 5.

A former Wales U21 netball player has been appointed by the ECB as National Talent Manager for women’s cricket.Diana Lewis, who is currently England Netball’s Performance Pathway Manager, will oversee the ECB’s talent development programme aimed at supporting the women’s professional game.She will work closely with the wider cricket network to help identify and develop talented youngsters across the grassroots game – with more than 700 cricket clubs nationwide now offering cricket for women and girls.”This is another important step forward in our plans to give more girls an opportunity to maximise their potential and embrace careers as professional cricketers – both with England Women and in the new Kia Super League,” said Clare Connor, the ECB’s director of women’s cricket.”Cricket is attracting women and girls in ever increasing numbers at grassroots level – giving us a wider pool of talent from which to choose than ever before. It’s an exciting time in the women’s game for Diana to take on this role and she will have a critical part to play in shaping the development of our most talented youngsters.”Lewis’s appointment follows the recent recruitment of Alun Powell, the RFU’s Head of Regional Academies, as a new National Talent Manager in the men’s game.Both roles will be based predominantly at the National Cricket Performance Centre at Loughborough University and have been created following recommendations made by an independent review of the existing county talent pathway.

ScorecardDean Elgar took charge of Somerset’s innings after a tricky start•Getty Images

Dean Elgar became the second Somerset batsman to score an unbeaten century in this season’s Royal London Cup as his side beat Sussex by nine runs under Duckworth-Lewis at Hove to claim their second South Group victory.Elgar made an unbeaten 131, his highest List A score, in Somerset’s 303 for 5 from 49 overs two days after Roelof van der Merwe had smashed 165 not out in the win over Surrey. Chasing 165 in 20 overs after two rain delays, Sussex finished on 155 for 9.Somerset, who were put in, had been 120 for 4 in the 27th over before Adam Hose joined South African Elgar to transform the innings in a partnership of 151 in 20 overs. There has only been one bigger stand by Somerset in List A matches against Sussex.Elgar scored his runs off 127 balls with ten fours and four sixes while Hose contributed 76 from just 59 deliveries, with five boundaries and three sixes as Somerset plundered 96 off the last nine overs before the first stoppage.Such a promising scenario had seemed unlikely earlier when Somerset completed the first ten-over Powerplay on 42 for 2. Steven Davies, who has struggled for runs since his move from Surrey, sliced the fourth ball of the innings from David Wiese to backward point and Wiese claimed a second victim in the ninth over when Peter Trego inside-edged and was caught behind.James Allenby lost middle and off stumps aiming to leg in the 15th over to give left-armer George Garton the first of two wickets but Elgar then began to take control, first in partnership with James Hildreth with whom he put on 61 in 12 overs.Hildreth looked in good touch until he was deceived by a quicker ball from slow left-armer Danny Briggs but thereafter Elgar and Hose were in complete control. Elgar’s first six off Briggs took him into the 90s before a quickly taken single brought up his fifth List A hundred from 107 balls.By now Hose was finding his range too. The seven sixes plundered by the pair were all deposited in an area between midwicket and long leg as they took advantage of a short boundary. Hose was dropped on 65 at long leg by Chris Nash and was in sight of beating his previous List A best of 77, made against Essex last season, when he holed out to wide long on.That brought van der Merwe to the crease and he was quickly into his stride, clearing the mid-wicket rope with his second and fourth scoring shots, both off Wiese, in a cameo of 15 from eight balls. But it was Elgar’s day and on this evidence South Africa may have made an error in leaving the 29-year-old out of their squad for next month’s Champions Trophy.Sussex’s reply got off to a poor start when Chris Nash was caught at short fine leg off the first ball from Craig Overton. Harry Finch and Luke Wright took them to 49 before van der Merwe made an impact with his slow left-arm. His quicker delivery bowled Finch first ball and he had Ben Brown lbw in his third over.Wright holed out to long-on during an impressive spell by legspinner Max Waller before another rain stoppage left Sussex needing 80 from 35 balls. Laurie Evans smashed five sixes in 40 off 20 balls to give them a chance, but their hopes effectively ended when he was caught at deep point.

Match facts

June 2, 2017
Start time 10.30am local (0930 GMT)
Will Australia’s vaunted seam attack show up on the first day?•Getty Images

Big picture

The 2015 World Cup proved that Australia and New Zealand were good hosts, and not in a “would you like a cup of tea and a freshly-baked biscuit?” kind of way. On the contrary, while Australia and New Zealand gorged themselves, their visitors all left hungry. They were good hosts in the sense that in the matches they hosted, they were damn good. New Zealand won every game they hosted (including against Australia in Auckland) and Australia won every game they hosted (including the final against New Zealand at the MCG). Home ground advantage was decisive throughout the World Cup. Now, both teams find themselves in another ODI world tournament, but this time as visitors. How will they cope in someone else’s lounge-room? And with England 200km away in London while Australia and New Zealand meet in Birmingham, will they find the tea-bags and jaffa cakes?But if the conditions are foreign, at least Australia and New Zealand should be familiar with each other. In the past six months alone they have played two Chappell-Hadlee series: Australia won in Australia and New Zealand won in New Zealand (what a surprise). Last time they met in an ODI on neutral soil was at this very ground, Edgbaston, in the previous Champions Trophy in 2013, in a match that was washed out.Australia enter this game with a pay dispute simmering away – and in fact threatening to boil over – back home, and Steven Smith must ensure his men put the issue to the side for the next few weeks. But perhaps more significant for their hopes at this tournament, Australia’s ODI side has not played together for nearly four months, other than a single warm-up game against Sri Lanka. Their other warm-up, against Pakistan, was washed out. New Zealand played a tri-series in Ireland last month and a series against South Africa in March, and may well find themselves in the 50-over mindset more readily than the Australians.If the ball swings, the pace attacks of both sides will be key. This is the first time Australia have had their four strike fast bowlers – Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins and James Pattinson – all available for the same series, though it is unlikely all four will play in this game. For New Zealand, Trent Boult and Tim Southee have the potential to swing their way through any batting line-up, with Adam Milne and Mitchell McClenaghan as other frontline options. But if there is little movement for the fast men, expect big totals at Edgbaston.Certainly both teams know that victory in this first game will go a long way towards securing progression from their group, with fixtures against Bangladesh and hosts England still to come. Now it’s just a question of which formidable host is a better visitor.

Form guide

Australia LLWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
New Zealand LWWWL

In the spotlight

David Warner played international cricket in England for the first time during the World Twenty20 in 2009, and since then has played 23 internationals in England across all formats. He is yet to score a century in the country. His record in England (average of 31.75 across all formats) is not quite so bad as his record in India (average 21.30) but still, if Warner can find a way to score big runs in this country for the first time, it will go a long way towards Australia having success in this campaign. Certainly his recent ODI form is encouraging for the Australians – in the past 12 months he has made 1409 ODI runs with eight centuries.Australia’s batsmen must have nightmares about Trent Boult with a white ball in hand. At Eden Park during the World Cup, his five-wicket haul set up New Zealand’s win and Australia’s only defeat of the tournament. At Seddon Park earlier this year, his 6 for 33 again destroyed Australia and secured the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy for New Zealand. In all, against Australia Boult has 24 ODI wickets at 18.41 – nearly twice as many victims as he has against any other team.

Team news

Steven Smith indicated on match eve that Australia were unlikely to pick all of Starc, Hazlewood, Cummins and Pattinson, and the most likely scenario is that Pattinson will miss out for either John Hastings or the batting allrounder Marcus Stoinis. Glenn Maxwell and Travis Head provide all-round spin options, which could mean Adam Zampa get squeezed out of the line-up.Australia: (possible) 1 David Warner, 2 Aaron Finch, 3 Steven Smith (capt), 4 Glenn Maxwell, 5 Travis Head, 6 Chris Lynn, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 John Hastings/Marcus Stoinis, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Pat Cummins, 11 Josh Hazlewood.New Zealand have a couple of decisions to make. Does Tom Latham or Luke Ronchi take the gloves and partner Martin Guptill at the top of the order? And how do they balance that attack, with so many allrounders and frontline bowling options? Choices, bro.New Zealand: (possible) 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Tom Latham/Luke Ronchi (wk), 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Neil Broom, 6 Corey Anderson, 7 James Neesham, 8 Mitchell Santner, 9 Tim Southee, 10 Colin de Grandhomme/Adam Milne/Mitchell McClenaghan, 11 Trent Boult.

Pitch and conditions

Runs positively piled up in the warm-up games at Edgbaston, where Bangladesh’s 341 was chased down by Pakistan, and Sri Lanka’s 356 was overhauled by New Zealand. There is the possibility of a shower or thunderstorm on Friday.

Stats and trivia

• Australia and New Zealand have met in four completed Champions Trophy matches, all of which have been won by Australia – including the final in 2009
• The all-time leading wicket taker in Champions Trophy matches is a New Zealander, though unfortunately for New Zealand not one who is playing in this tournament: Kyle Mills
• Over the past three years Australia and New Zealand have met in 11 ODIs; in the previous three years they met only once

Quotes

“They’ve got some good new-ball bowlers who can swing the ball around, and if there’s a bit there we’ll have to be quite watchful. If it’s good batting and the sun is out, then hopefully we can put a bit of pressure on those guys.”
“Any time you play Australia, whatever team they put out, they are very tough to beat. We’are usually involved in series, where you kind of get into games and, hopefully, improve throughout. But tomorrow’s a one-off fixture and it’s tournament cricket, so it’s important we start strong.”

Match facts

June 18, 2017
Start time 1030 local (0930GMT)

Big picture

How is it that we have got here? It seems surreal. In the age of skirting around stereotypes and upending norms, here comes a contest almost as old as partition itself: Pakistani bowling v Indian batting, and still, though we have all tasted this and read some version of this script, it doesn’t feel even slightly hackneyed, not even a little stale.How could it be? Australia might be the winningest outfit in the game, but are there two prouder cricket nations than India and Pakistan? Close your eyes. Bring to mind the players of yore. Waqar Younis and his yorkers, with tails like comets, making matchsticks out of the stumps; Mohammad Azharuddin, his flicks like brushwork, the ball teleporting through the leg side, reappearing so far into the distance you only knew it had arrived when it thwacked the boundary board. Here is Sachin Tendulkar tapping his bat, so poised, so zen at the crease; there blows Shoaib Akhtar like a hot wind, limbs whipping through that elastic action. An India v Pakistan match is not so much a new chapter in a rivalry, as a clash of cricketing bloodlines.And an elemental force has each side been in this tournament. India, sleeker now than they have been in previous decades, have overpowered oppositions to get to this final. Not since Australia in the last decade, has an ODI team looked quite so clinical, quite so bristling with purpose. They have a formula about their game too: start steady with the bat, surge through the middle, and finish big. With the ball: strangle up front, make incisions through the middle, and let the opposition innings bleed out. They stand now, muscles rippling, only once – against Sri Lanka – having had to break a sweat.Pakistan, meanwhile, have been the same old manic vortex: awful sometimes, amazing at others, transitioning from one to the other between matches, or within the same over – who knows how the mood will strike? While India are a knowable, quantifiable outfit, Pakistan’s strength is their imperviousness to any kind of rational breaking down of their game. How can you plan against that?Still, it is Pakistan who will have to spring the surprise here. They are the team that has to make the charge on Minas Tirith. It is up to them to gird up their strike power for the raid on the Death Star.At these global events, they have long been the race-car that goes from zero to a hundred quicker than anyone else, it’s just that sometimes, that is while tumbling off a side of a cliff.

Form guide

India WWLWL (completed matches, most recent first)
Pakistan WWWLW

In the spotlight

No one has quite lived out India’s dominance in the Champions Trophy, nor their appetite for the big events, like Shikhar Dhawan, whose 317 runs at an average of 79.25 (and a strike rate of 102), places him at the top of the run scorers’ list. Much like with his team, there is a brooding confidence in Dhawan’s game at the moment. He is resplendently unflustered by slow starts, backing himself to score quickly later on. So well-placed is India when he typically departs, that it’s not just that he has laid the foundation, he has helped complete most of the building. All that remains for the likes of MS Dhoni to do is stick a spire on the top, and run the flag up the pole.And who better embodies the campaign of what was the eighth-ranked team in the tournament than the man who was thought to be only the fourth-best quick in the squad. Hasan Ali has a hint of the old Pakistan sorcery about his bowling: the in his approach, the theatrical celebration, the wisps of reverse swing. With ten victims at an average of 17.20, and a wonderful economy rate of 4.52, he has the potential to be the pebble that jams up India’s cogs, and brings the machinery tumbling down.

Team news

R Ashwin was seen with a heavily-taped right knee on the eve of the match, and had appeared to pull a muscle. He required the physiotherapist’s attention and was then seen doing short run ups followed by stretches later. If he is ruled unfit, Umesh Yadav, who took 3 for 30 in the opening match against Pakistan, may slot back into the XI. Such is the quality in India’s squad, that they can lose a player of Ashwin’s stature and still not be too badly dented by it.India (possible) 1 Rohit Sharma, 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Virat Kohli (capt), 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 MS Dhoni (wk), 6 Kedar Jadhav, 7 Hardik Pandya, 8 Ravindra Jadeja, 9 R Ashwin/Umesh Yadav,10 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 11 Jasprit BumrahMohammad Amir has been ruled fit after missing the semi-final with a back spasm, meaning Rumman Raees is likely to exit the XI, despite his excellent debut.Pakistan (possible) 1 Azhar Ali, 2 Fakhar Zaman, 3 Babar Azam, 4 Mohammad Hafeez, 5 Shoaib Malik, 6 Sarfraz Ahmed (capt & wk), 7 Imad Wasim, 8 Mohammad Amir, 9 Shadab Khan, 10 Hasan Ali, 11 Junaid Khan

Pitch and conditions

A fresh pitch is being used for the match and appears mostly dry, so perhaps the track will favour batsmen and scores in excess of 300 are likely. The forecast is for a slightly cloudy, but mostly dry day, with temperatures reaching the high twenties.

Stats and trivia

• Although Pakistan have an overall lead in the head-to-head stakes, having won 72 matches to India’s 52, they have lost eight of the 10 matches the teams have played in global tournaments.
• India have scored 1098 runs at a per-batsman average of 91.50 in the tournament, which makes them by a distance the best batting side on show. The next-best average is England’s 41.11
• Pakistan’s 31 wickets are the most taken by any team in the Champions Trophy. Since that opening loss to India, they have taken 28 wickets at 23.78 and maintained an economy rate of 4.46.
• Three of India’s top-five average higher than 43 against Pakistan – Rohit Sharma (37.90) is the lone exception.
• Junaid Khan has taken eight wickets at an average of 21.50 in five matches against India. He has dismissed Kohli three times, and conceded only two runs to him.

Quotes

“I don’t see any relevance of the first game here because you can never tell how a particular team starts a tournament. Some teams start very confidently and then they fade off. Some teams might not have the best starts, and they come back amazingly, which Pakistan have done. So everyone is aware of the kind of talent they have in their team, and on their day they can beat any side in the world.”
“I said before the Edgbaston game [against India], that I thought they were really, really calm. But they’re very, very excited now, and there’s a hell of a good vibe in that dressing room. Let’s hope we can pull out our ‘A’ game again tomorrow. If we play our ‘A’ game together and do the basics well, we can beat anybody.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsFile photo – Sunil Narine ran up a 27-ball half-century to raze Barbados Tridents•Randy Brooks – CPL T20 / Getty

Sunil Narine’s career-best 79 off 45 balls, made partly possible by some horrendous fielding from Barbados Tridents, helped Trinbago Knight Riders retain their top position in the 2017 Caribbean Premier League with a two-wicket win. In a highly entertaining contest, though not necessarily for its quality, Knight Riders squeaked past the Tridents total of 152 for 9 with five balls to spare for their fourth win in five games, while Tridents suffered their second defeat.New-ball strikesAfter inserting Tridents, Knight Riders captain Dwayne Bravo opened with spin in the form of Khaya Pierre. The left-armer dropped short in his second and third deliveries, and Dwayne Smith struck him for a four through point and a six over midwicket. Pierre then adjusted to a fuller length and had Smith, trying to slog, hole out to deep midwicket in the fifth ball of the over.Tridents coach Robin Singh has a reputation for sending bowlers up the order as pinch-hitters, but his ploy failed with Wayne Parnell. Sent up to No. 3, Parnell lasted three balls before Ronsford Beaton had him splicing a catch to midwicket in the second over to leave Tridents on 19 for 2.Shoaib Malik passes 7000 runsTwo nights earlier, in St Lucia, Smith became the sixth player to reach 7000 runs in T20 cricket. On Saturday night, at Queen’s Park Oval, his Tridents team-mate Malik, became the seventh, getting there during a 71-run third-wicket stand with Kane Williamson that repaired the Tridents innings.Malik shone against the medium pacers, driving Kevon Cooper twice to the boundary in the sixth, before unleashing two cuts and a pull off Dwayne Bravo in the ninth. The 7000th run also brought up Malik’s fifty, with a single off Narine. But he fell two balls later to Beaton, who bowled superbly to finish with 2 for 24. Tridents lost wickets consistently thereafter, but brisk cameos from Nicholas Pooran and Akeal Hossain ensured a furious finish to their innings.Best’s worstWayne Parnell’s yorker to bowl Brendon McCullum in the fourth ball of the chase gave Tridents an early lift, but it was short-lived. Tino Best set the tone for a diabolical fielding performance in the following over, with a match-defining drop.Narine had driven Wahab Riaz’s first two balls for four when the bowler dragged his length back to induce a skewed pull back over his head. Best, at mid-off, called off Pollard at mid-on as the ball floated gently for a simple chance, only to spill it and leave Pollard stone-faced.Can’t catch a coldPakistan’s players may have been called back by their board, but Wahab’s team-mates had a funny way of showing how much they’ll miss him, putting down chance after chance off his bowling. Narine was on 35 in the 10th, with the score 70 for 2, when a top-edged pull swirled towards Shamar Springer, who slid at deep square leg but couldn’t hold on.Wahab cramped Darren Bravo later in the over for a caught behind, and two balls later, Pollard had Denesh Ramdin caught at long-on to even the scales at 76 for 4. But Narine continued in his adventurous ways at the other end, striking Malik down the ground for six and then a single to bring up his maiden CPL fifty, off 27 balls. He then flicked Pollard over square leg for six and four in the 13th to move to his career-best T20 score.Wahab, and the drops, returned in the 14th. Narine was on 62 when he skied one to long-on where Barnwell, off balance having skidded on the slick grass, shelled the chance. Two balls later, he put down Dwayne Bravo at deep square leg off Parnell, despite being firm-footed on this occasion.Late Knight dramaKnight Riders needed 21 off 24 balls when wickets started tumbling. Dwayne Bravo played around a good length ball from Springer that jagged back to clean him up for 18. Shadab then dragged Parnell on in the next over for a duck, but Knight Riders still had Narine with eight needed off two overs.He fell on the first ball of the 19th, picking out sweeper cover off Springer. Javon Searles crunched the next delivery to the midwicket boundary, but finished the over having dragged a full toss to Parnell in the circle. It boiled down to Knight Riders needing two runs off the final over with two wickets in hand. Kevon Cooper sealed victory when he drove the first ball from Best through point.