Pakistan positive end to tour under new T20I skipper Sarfraz

England have one more game of international cricket, Wednesday's (September 7) one-off Twenty20 International (T20I) against Pakistan at Old Trafford before they can throw their feet up and reflect on what has largely been a fruitful summer of cricket.

Plans for the winter tours of Bangladesh and India are already in an advanced stage with the team scheduled for their sub-continental sojourn in little over two weeks from now. A defeat in the T20I will do little to disparage their ever-rising limited-overs stocks but victory would certainly serve as the cherry on top of the scrumptious cake for the English cricket patrons before Premier League football dominates their households after the international break.

Eoin Morgan remains undecided on his participation in the Bangladesh tour but is steadfast in his desire for his shorter format team to go from strength to strength. Having squandered a rare opportunity to inflict an One Day International (ODI) series whitewash on Pakistan in Cardiff last week, the England skipper is eager to close out the season with a win in the lone T20I. It is this new-found allegiance towards white-ball cricket and the possibility of potentially dominating the format, that's forced selectors into naming a full-strength squad for what is, in the bigger picture, a relatively insignificant game.

Pakistan, on the other hand, find that been on the road in the unfamiliar climes of the British summer for a little over two months now. Their herculean efforts to draw the Test series came up with a price for they folded rather meekly in the ensuing five-match ODI series. But even in the last leg of an emotionally-draining campaign lies an opportunity for new beginnings. Sarfraz Ahmed takes over as captain of the T20I side, hoping to impress his own adventurism and propensity for daredevilry. The team though, still retains the crux of the outfit that turned out under Shahid Afridi for the World T20. Pakistan are the top-ranked Test team. Their push up the T20I rankings starts now