T20
World Cup final: England and Pakistan to meet as Jos Buttler allows himself to
dream
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ICC Men's T20 World Cup final: Pakistan v England |
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Venue: Melbourne Cricket Ground Date: 13 November Time: 08:00 GMT |
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Coverage: Ball-by-ball Test Match Special commentary
on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra, Radio 4 LW, online, tablets, mobiles and BBC
Sport app. Live text commentary and in-play video clips on the BBC Sport
website and app. |
England captain Jos Buttler says he has been dreaming about
lifting the Men's T20 World Cup trophy before Sunday's final against Pakistan
in Melbourne.
The sides meet at 08:00 GMT on Sunday with England bidding to
unite the global 50 and 20-over titles.
Eoin Morgan led England to their victory in 2019 before retiring
in June, with this tournament Buttler's first global event since taking over.
"It really links back to what you were like as a kid,"
said Buttler.
"The kind of things you would be doing in the garden with
your brother and sister, pretending to lift a trophy.
"I've certainly had a few dreams about that kind of thing.
"Now to be able to have the opportunity to have a chance to live that out is incredibly special."
What to expect in Sunday's
final
The final pits the tournament's best bowling attack - Pakistan's
left-armer Shaheen Afridi, fast bowler Haris Rauf and leg-spinner Shadab Khan
are among the best in the world - against England's fearsome batting line-up at
the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground.
The fixture is sold out, a crowd of over 90,000 expected, with
Pakistan set to be heavily supported.
Buttler's side reached the final with a superb 10-wicket victory
over India on Thursday, their best performance in a campaign that was
struggling after a shock defeat by Ireland in the group stage.
Pakistan had a very rocky start, losing their first two games before winning four in succession to secure a place in the final.
The two sides finished a closely-fought seven-match series in
Pakistan just five weeks ago, with England winning 4-3.
Buttler played down the importance of that victory, given the
final will be played in completely different conditions in Australia.
He also said fast bowler Mark Wood and batter Dawid Malan, who
both missed the semi-final with injury, are "improving" and did not
rule them out of selection.
Wood
cast doubt on his participation on Friday, but, after the pair went through
fitness tests, he bowled at good pace in the nets on Saturday.
Pakistan hoping for repeat
of 1992
The final is also a repeat of the famous 1992 50-over World Cup
final on the same ground, which Pakistan won by 22 runs.
In that tournament Pakistan only won one of their first five
games before mounting a remarkable turnaround, urged by their captain Imran
Khan's instruction to "fight like cornered tigers".
Coincidentally, Pakistan met New Zealand in the semi-final 30
years ago, the same opponent they swept aside on Wednesday in the last four.
Former batter Ramiz Raja, who was one of the 1992 playing squad
and is now chair of the Pakistan Cricket Board, spoke to the players about the
win.
"He was just reliving some of those stories around the '92
World Cup," said former Australia opener Matthew Hayden, who is part of
the Pakistan coaching staff.
"These boys, inevitably their careers will be but a blink
and they'll be looking back on this tournament regardless of the result, saying
we were in a final and hopefully a winning final.
"And they'll tell these stories around campfires in their
villages, in media conferences and it will be an important chapter of Pakistan
cricket - as the '92 campaign was."
