Pakistan v England T20 World Cup predictions & cricket betting tips

Free cricket tips, best bets & analysis for Pakistan v England in Sunday's T20 World Cup final in Melbourne.

Where to watch

Sky Sports Cricket & Main Event, 8am Sunday

Best bets

Babar Azam to score under 25.5 runs
3pts 5-6 bet365

Liam Livingstone to hit most sixes in the match
1pt 11-2 bet365

Preview

England face Pakistan in a fascinating T20 World Cup final in Melbourne on Sunday morning although a poor weather forecast means the 20-over showdown could spill into a reserve day on Monday.

It has been an excellent tournament, packed with tight finishes and surprise results, but several group-stage games, including England's MCG clash with Australia, were rained off.

The weather is highly likely to disrupt the final with showers expected on Sunday and Monday and the trophy could be shared if at least a ten-overs-per-side match is not completed.

The outlook is frustrating for two teams who came through their semi-final assignments in impressive fashion. Pakistan beat New Zealand by seven wickets and England chased down a target of 169 to overcome India without losing a wicket.

Openers Jos Buttler and Alex Hales demolished the Indian bowling in an unbroken stand of 170, having put on 81 and 75 in England's last two Group 1 matches, and their match-up with Pakistan's new-ball attack will be crucial.

England are 8-13 favourites and the strength of their batting unit means they should cope better than Pakistan in a rain-shortened contest. Buttler and Hales hit ten sixes between them against India while devastating hitters such as Liam Livingstone and Moeen Ali could be pushed up the order.

England won their pre-tournament T20 series in Pakistan 4-3 despite missing several key players and they should have learned from their rain-affected defeat to Ireland in the group stage.

A lack of urgency from their batters left them behind on the D/L method when rain came despite Moeen's unbeaten 24 off 12 balls.

Pakistan made light work of New Zealand in the semis but their Group 2 campaign was far from straightforward. After losing thrillers to India and Zimbabwe, Babar Azam's side took advantage of South Africa's shock defeat to the Netherlands to squeeze through to the semis.

Babar and Mohammad Rizwan shared a century opening stand against the Kiwis but the skipper's 53 off 42 balls did not entirely dispel concerns about his T20 form.

Since the start of September's Asia Cup he has had 16 scores of 25 or under in 24 innings and only two of the ten opening batsmen England have faced at this tournament have reached 30 against them. The trophy favourites, whose paceman Mark Wood will have a late fitness test, can be confident of dismissing Babar cheaply.

Livingstone has had a quiet tournament, largely due to the excellence of England's openers, but he hit two sixes in a 16-ball 28 in a warm-up game against Pakistan. He also struck 13 maximums in three innings against them in 2021's home T20 series and is worth a bet to top the six-hitting charts in the final.