Teams prepare for Twenty20

Pakistan’s tour of England continues in earnest on Monday, with a Twenty20 contest between the two sides which will provide a welcome return to the cricket field. The teams meet at the County Ground, Bristol, in a precursor to a five-match one-day series.

England are expected to welcome Darren Gough back to the international fold after a year’s absence, while Stuart Broad could get a debut as part of a three-man pace attack ahead of Sajid Mahmood. They also face a choice between Ed Joyce and Alastair Cook as an opener, with Joyce the more likely to get the nod.

Jamie Dalrymple will continue in the middle order alongside Paul Collingwood, with Rikki Clarke missing out for the time being. Andrew Strauss will be hoping for a better outcome to the series than his first series as captain, which ended as a 5-0 whitewash at the hands of Sri Lanka – the captain will slot in at number three in the order, ahead of Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell.

For Pakistan, Shahid Afridi will return to the side as an opener in a game tailor-made for him. Shoaib Malik, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and Shoaib Akhtar are all set for comebacks after injury, while Umar Gul could keep his place as part of a four-man pace attack.

Abdul Razzaq could add some power to the middle order, while Younis Khan might drop down from number three to help in the latter overs. Inzmam-ul-Haq will be looking to put his side’s focus back on cricket, with a game that is sure to provide some great entertainment for a capacity crowd. The game gets underway at 3pm tomorrow.

England (possible): Marcus Trescothick, Ed Joyce, Andrew Strauss (captain), Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, Paul Collingwood, Jamie Dalrymple, Chris Read (wicketkeeper), Darren Gough, Stuart Broad, Steve Harmison.

Pakistan (possible): Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi, Mohammad Yousuf, Inzamam-ul-Haq (captain), Younis Khan, Abdul Razzaq, Kamran Akmal (wicketkeeper), Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Shoaib Akhtar, Umar Gul, Mohammad Asif.