England | Pakistan

Joe Root (62*) and Jordan Cox (59*) enable England chase 130-run target with enviable ease

England secure an unassailable 2-0 lead in a three-match series against Pakistan

Fast bowler eyes playing until 40 as England’s fast-bowling depth impresses

Skipper lays down the law as England seek to end off-field woes

Root, Cox steadied England after Pakistan were bowled out for 171

He takes charge for England’s August 19 clash with Pakistan

England have recalled Dan Lawrence from two years of Test exile to face Pakistan, with the batsman pencilled in to fill the middle-order vacancy created by the retirement of captain Ben Stokes. National selector Marcus North, announcing a 16-man squad for the first two matches of the three-Test series on Thursday, confirmed Lawrence would bat at number six. Jordan Cox, who replaces the injured Jacob Bethell, will bat at number three. Joe Root leads the side after being appointed for a second stint, with the first Test starting at Headingley on August 19. Lawrence has been in the international wilderness since he made his 14th Test appearance in September 2024, playing out of position as an opener against Sri Lanka. The Surrey batter, 29, has been in impressive form in the County Championship this season, averaging more than 65, with five centuries. Cox, 25, made his debut against New Zealand in the second Test at the Oval in June, when he replaced Stokes, who was omitted after he broke a team curfew. Fast bow...

The Green Shirts are set to tour England in May 2027 for a five-match one-day international (ODI) series, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said on Thursday. In a press release, it said that the opening match is scheduled for May 15, 2027 in Southampton, with the series ending on May 26, 2027. The second ODI will be played in Manchester on May 19, while Leeds will host the third match on May 21. The fourth and fifth ODIs will be played in Chester-le-Street and Cardiff on May 23 and 26, respectively, the board said. Pakistan’s men team is currently touring the West Indies for a two-match Test series. Following the series, Pakistan will travel to England for a three-match Test series from August 19 to September 13, the PCB said. The PCB statement added that next year’s five-match ODI series with England will provide both sides an opportunity to prepare for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2027, which will be held in October and November and hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia. Pakistan are currently rank...

England beat France 6-4 in a chaotic World Cup third-place playoff on Saturday as Kylian Mbappe became the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history. Both teams had higher aspirations at the 2026 tournament but suffered painful semi-final exits — France were outplayed by Spain while England suffered a late collapse against Argentina. Both coaches made multiple changes for the match in the oppressive heat of Miami, with a host of stars on the bench at the start. England boss Thomas Tuchel left out Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham from his starting line-up while Deschamps, stepping down after 14 years at the helm, omitted Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembele. Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice put England ahead with a goal from distance in the third minute and Ezri Konsa headed home to make it 2-0. Kylian Mbappe and Michael Olise were a threat as France searched for a way back into the game but they found England’s second-choice goalkeeper Dean Henderson in top form. The game threatened to become embarrassing for F...

Argentina's Enzo Fernandez and Lautaro Martinez struck late goals to snatch a 2-1 win over England

She is the most capped women's player in England history

Pundits and former players highlighted India’s struggles with the bat on Saturday after the Twenty20 World Cup champions suffered back-to-back series defeats by England and Ireland. England beat India by 56 runs in the fifth and final T20I at Southampton, the hosts sealing a 4-0 series win after the opener ended in a no result due to rain. That series defeat came after Ireland had completed a 2-0 T20 whitewash last month. Player-turned-commentator Dinesh Karthik said India’s batting unit had looked out of rhythm throughout the tour. “I think India have a problem adapting to a little bit of extra bounce,” he told cricket news site Cricbuzz. “The middle order looks wobbly, not confident, and it is definitely not the Indian team that we saw during the World Cup or before it in bilateral series, where they took down opponents and actually imposed a lot of fear. Where has that gone?” India captain Shreyas Iyer said their failure to adapt to different conditions had cost them in the series. “We kept on going from o...

Julian Alvarez scored a breathtaking goal as Argentina battled past 10-man Switzerland 3-1 after extra-time on Sunday, setting up a mouthwatering World Cup semi-final against bitter rivals England. Fans of the South American team dominated the stands in Kansas City and were celebrating as early as the 10th minute when their hero Lionel Messi set up Alexis Mac Allister’s opener. Switzerland levelled midway through the second half through Dan Ndoye, but minutes later, disaster struck when Embolo was sent off after picking up a second yellow card for simulation. The match went to extra-time and Switzerland snuffed out wave after wave of attacks until Alvarez curled a breathtaking strike into the top corner in the 112th minute. Lautaro Martinez added gloss with a late third. The hard-fought victory for Lionel Scaloni’s men at the Arrowhead Stadium means the top four teams in the FIFA rankings will contest the semi-finals of the 2026 tournament. Argentina are now unbeaten in their past 12 World Cup matches as they...

Jude Bellingham scored twice, including the extra-time winner, as England ground out a 2-1 victory over a battling Norway side at Miami Stadium on Sunday to reach the World Cup semi-finals for the fourth time. The teams were locked up ​1-1 at the end of regulation time after Andreas Schjelderup had opened the scoring for Norway with a wonder strike in the 36th minute and Bellingham skipped ‌into the area to equalise just before halftime. Three minutes into extra time, though, Morgan Rogers fired a long-range shot at the Norwegian goal that Orjan Nyland could only parry and Bellingham stole in to bury the rebound, delighting the white-shirted fans in the crowd of 64,478. England will face Argentina or Switzerland in Atlanta on Wednesday in their fourth semi-final in their last five major championships, looking to stay on course for a repeat of their sole World ​Cup triumph of 1966. “The result is fantastic. We’re in the last four. It’s amazing, but I’m not happy with the performance,” England coach Thomas Tuch...

England lock horns with Norway in a World Cup quarter-final in Miami on Saturday that pits Harry Kane against Erling Haaland in a mouthwatering battle of elite strikers. The teams are competing to face either reigning champions Argentina or surprise package Switzerland in the semi-finals. Kane has once again been England’s hero, dragging his teammates through an attritional last-16 meeting with Mexico at the Estadio Azteca that they won 3-2 despite having a man sent off. The Bayern Munich forward has scored six goals to fire the Three Lions to the quarter-finals. Haaland appears to have been enjoying himself ever since he touched down in the United States and began smashing in the seven goals that have carried Norway further than ever before. Their run, which included eliminating Brazil, has been accompanied by their fans’ joyous rowing celebration that has turned venues across the US into giant human Viking ships. A young Norwegian fan prepares to participate in the “Viking Row,” a cheer created by Norwegian...

Harry Kane rescued England from a seismic World Cup shock with two late goals to beat the Democratic Republic of Congo 2-1 in Atlanta and secure a place in the last 16. Aiming to end a 60-year wait to win a major tournament, Thomas Tuchel’s men escaped humiliation and one of England’s worst ever World Cup exits thanks to their talismanic captain after Brian Cipenga’s goal gave Congo an early lead. But the Three Lions will need to improve for the daunting task of facing co-hosts Mexico at the Estadio Azteca in the last 16 on Sunday. Already England’s all-time top goalscorer in the competition, Kane now has 13 World Cup goals and moves onto five for the tournament to remain in the the star-studded battle for the Golden Boot. Defeat ended Congo’s fairytale run on their return to the World Cup for the first time in 52 years. The Leopards had never even won a point or scored a goal at the World Cup until a few weeks ago, but had one of the tournament favourites teetering on the brink of elimination. Tuchel made tw...

James Garner and Jason Steele received their first England call-ups

India clung on to beat England by seven runs in a thrilling T20 World Cup semi-final in Mumbai on Thursday, despite Jacob Bethell’s superb 105. After Sanju Samson’s scintillating 89 laid the platform for India to pile up a massive 253-7, England fell just short in what would have been a record chase, finishing on 246-7. Phil Salt (5), Harry Brook (7) and Jos Buttler (25) fell early, but Bethell, aided by Will Jacks (35) kept England in the hunt. The left-hander hit seven sixes and eight fours in his 48-ball thrash before his run out in the final over finally allowed India to celebrate in front of 35,000 jubilant fans in Mumbai’s Wankhede stadium. India will face New Zealand in Sunday’s final in Ahmedabad as they attempt to become the first team to retain the trophy and the first to win it on home soil. The hosts, having been asked to bat by Brook, earlier flayed England’s attack to all parts of the ground, hitting 19 sixes and 18 fours. Samson signalled his intent with a four and six off Jofra Archer’s first ...

Harry Brook conceded on Wednesday that India were favourites to win the T20 World Cup on home soil, but warned them that England’s “perfect performance” was “just around the corner”. The previous two winners of the T20 World Cup — India won in 2024, England in 2022 — will go head-to-head in a blockbuster semi-final at Mumbai’s famed Wankhede stadium on Thursday night. The match will be played in a cauldron-like atmosphere — temperatures are forecast to be in the mid-30s Celsius with a capacity crowd of 35,000 Indian fans raising the roof. Hundreds of millions more will follow on TV and streaming sites across the cricket-obsessed nation. Asked if it gets any better than that, Brook said: “It’s up there for sure. “It’s a dream come true for most of us to play in a World Cup semi-final against the home nation on a very iconic ground,” the England captain told reporters at the Wankhede stadium, minutes before his side’s final training session ahead of the semi-final. “We’re obviously going into the game very conf...

England will go into their T20 World Cup semi-final against India with no fear, said all-rounder Sam Curran on Tuesday, adding that their first job would be to silence a raucous home crowd. England will take on the favourites and hosts in front of 35,000 fiercely partisan fans in Mumbai on Thursday, with a place in the final against South Africa or New Zealand at stake. The noise will be deafening at times in the cauldron-like confines of the Wankhede Stadium. But Curran said that because he and many of his England teammates — such as Will Jacks at the Mumbai Indians — play in the Indian Premier League (IPL), they will not be fazed. “It’s an experience as a young cricketer you dream of — playing India in the semi-final of a World Cup,” left-arm seamer Curran told reporters. Curran was in the international wilderness a year ago but forced his way back into the England squad with eye-catching performances in T20 franchise leagues, including the IPL. “India are a quality side but we’ve played a lot of cricket he...