England ready for ‘much-improved’ Pakistan, says Lauren Winfield

England batter Lauren Winfield has praised Pakistan for the team’s rapid progress as the two sides get set to tussle in a crucial Women’s T20 World Cup clash on Friday. 

Pakistan raised eyebrows with a thumping eight-wicket win over 2016 winners West Indies, throwing Group B wide open and fuelling hope the country can reach the knockout stages for the first time.

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Winfield, part of an England side that beat Pakistan 3-0 in a series in Malaysia back in December, says the scoreline was not necessarily reflective of the strides made by their opponents..

“Pakistan already looked like they’ve improved from December,” said Winfield. “They played some good cricket in that series in patches.

“Looking from afar, you read results, you win a series 3-0 and no one delves into the details. They’re a much-improved side and they played some good cricket in Malaysia.

“This tournament is giving teams with a lot of slower bowling that don’t often score huge totals an opportunity, because they’ve got good conditions with fast outfields.

“Often when you tour the subcontinent, if they don’t have a power game they find it harder. You get really good value for your shots in Australia, so those batting line-ups and those teams have come to life.

“That bodes well for a great tournament and it gives people across the board a better chance of playing good cricket.”

Pakistan captain Bismah Maroof showed signs of good form in the December series defeat to England, scoring 60 in the first T20I, and she shepherded her team to their tournament-opening win over West Indies, top-scoring with an unbeaten 38 in their chase of 124.

Bismah’s deputy, and opener, Javeria Khan posted an unbeaten 57 in the third and final match in December and continues to shoulder more responsibility as a senior batter, helping set the tone in Wednesday’s shock win with a well-made 35.

Lower-order batter Aliya Riaz admits her side caught West Indies unaware with their plans, but believes they will not be able to rely on the same element of surprise against familiar foes England.

“It’s going to be a big game, a pressure game as well,” said Riaz. “We’ll need to perform exceptionally well and be very disciplined in all three areas of the game to beat a team as good as England.

“People don’t know a lot about what our plans are so we can surprise teams, but that works both ways. We are preparing and we will take it match-by-match.

“We’re not looking at qualifying, we’re moving forward and planning.”

This article first appeared on the International Cricket Council’s official T20 World Cup website.

Live coverage of the 2020 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup continues on Sky Sports, with England Women next in action against Pakistan Women on Friday at 7.30am.

(c) Sky Sports 2020: England ready for ‘much-improved’ Pakistan, says Lauren Winfield