Liam Livingstone smashed the fastest Twenty20 century by an Englishman in just 42 balls against Pakistan but it was in vain as England lost a white ball match for the first time this summer, falling short by 31 runs in Trent Bridge on Friday.

England`s regulars returned from quarantine after a second-string squad swept the one-day international series 3-0, with Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow and Tom Curran back in the team and Eoin Morgan leading the side. 
 
Morgan won the toss and chose to bowl first but the move backfired as Pakistan capitalised on the short boundaries, smashing 20 fours and 12 sixes to post 232-6 -- their highest total in T20 internationals. 
 
In response, England were bowled out for 201. 
 
Seamer Shaheen Afridi (3-30) struck early to dismiss Dawid Malan, diving forward on his follow-through to have the opener caught and bowled, before he had Bairstow caught off a top edge to leave England two down in the fourth over. 
 
Pakistan`s poor fielding was a major talking point in the final ODI but they turned up on the night, taking difficult catches in the deep and even inflicting a run out with a direct hit. 
 
Moeen Ali fell when Haris Rauf took a bizarre catch in the deep, holding on to the ball even as he jumped into Sohaib Maqsood`s arms as his team mate tried to avoid a collision, while Jason Roy (32) failed to make good on a bright start. 
 
Livingstone hit a barrage of sixes to initially bring up England`s fastest T20 fifty in just 17 balls but kept going to reach his maiden T20 century with a six. 
But as wickets fell at the other end, the pressure was on Livingstone and he was caught the very next ball on the boundary on 103 as the asking rate crept above 14 per over. 
 
Pakistan's flying start

Earlier, Pakistan`s openers got the tourists off to a flying start with 49 runs in the power play before increasing that run rate as skipper Babar Azam brought up their 100 in the 12th over with a six. 
 
Mohammad Rizwan hit 63 off 41 balls in a 150-run opening stand before he was flummoxed by a slow bouncer from Lewis Gregory, edging it to Bairstow. 
 
Azam picked up where he left off after his knock of 158 in the third ODI, hitting 85 of 49 balls before he was caught behind off David Willey. 
 
Despite having two new batsmen at the crease in the death overs, Fakhar Zaman (26 off 8) and Mohammad Hafeez (24 off 10) constructed a 46-run partnership off just 16 deliveries to guide Pakistan to their record total.

Liam Livingstone smashed the fastest Twenty20 century by an Englishman in just 42 balls against Pakistan but it was in vain as England lost a white ball match for the first time this summer, falling short by 31 runs in Trent Bridge on Friday.

Liam Livingstone smashed the fastest Twenty20 century by an Englishman in just 42 balls against Pakistan but it was in vain as England lost a white ball match for the first time this summer, falling short by 31 runs in Trent Bridge on Friday. England`s regulars returned from quarantine after a second-string squad swept the one-day international series 3-0, with Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow and Tom Curran back in the team and Eoin Morgan leading the side. Morgan won the toss and chose to bowl first but the move backfired as Pakistan capitalised on the short boundaries, smashing 20 fours and 12 sixes to post 232-6 -- their highest total in T20 internationals. In response, England were bowled out for 201. Seamer Shaheen Afridi (3-30) struck early to dismiss Dawid Malan, diving forward on his follow-through to have the opener caught and bowled, before he had Bairstow caught off a top edge to leave England two down in the fourth over. Pakistan`s poor fielding was a major talking point in the final ODI but they turned up on the night, taking difficult catches in the deep and even inflicting a run out with a direct hit. Moeen Ali fell when Haris Rauf took a bizarre catch in the deep, holding on to the ball even as he jumped into Sohaib Maqsood`s arms as his team mate tried to avoid a collision, while Jason Roy (32) failed to make good on a bright start. Livingstone hit a barrage of sixes to initially bring up England`s fastest T20 fifty in just 17 balls but kept going to reach his maiden T20 century with a six. But as wickets fell at the other end, the pressure was on Livingstone and he was caught the very next ball on the boundary on 103 as the asking rate crept above 14 per over. Pakistan's flying start Earlier, Pakistan`s openers got the tourists off to a flying start with 49 runs in the power play before increasing that run rate as skipper Babar Azam brought up their 100 in the 12th over with a six. Mohammad Rizwan hit 63 off 41 balls in a 150-run opening stand before he was flummoxed by a slow bouncer from Lewis Gregory, edging it to Bairstow. Azam picked up where he left off after his knock of 158 in the third ODI, hitting 85 of 49 balls before he was caught behind off David Willey. Despite having two new batsmen at the crease in the death overs, Fakhar Zaman (26 off 8) and Mohammad Hafeez (24 off 10) constructed a 46-run partnership off just 16 deliveries to guide Pakistan to their record total.

Cricket: Resurgent Pakistan beat England by 31 runs in T20 run fest

India rides high on confidence to Australia after trumping West Indies, says skipper

Paceman Jaydev Unadkat led a disciplined attack to set up India&#39;s five-wicket win in the third Twenty20 international against Sri Lanka as the hosts completed a 3-0 whitewash on Sunday.

Unadkat returned impressive figures of 2-15 to help restrict the visitors to 135-7. India then achieved their target with four balls to spare in a tense chase at the Wankhede Stadium.

Manish Pandey top-scored with 32 but it was Dinesh Karthik (18) and Mahendra Singh Dhoni (16) who put on an unbeaten 31-run stand to take the team home.

The win ensured that India end the year on a high after outplaying the islanders in the Test (1-0), one-day (2-1) and T20 series.

Sri Lanka however put the hosts under pressure with regular strikes as paceman Dushmantha Chameera and medium-pace bowler Dasun Shanaka claimed two wickets each.

Shanaka got skipper Rohit Sharma for 27, early in the chase. The in-form Sharma hit 4 fours and a six during his 20-ball stay but his wicket silenced the crowd. &nbsp;

Shreyas Iyer, who scored 30 before being run out while backing up at the non-strikers end, and Pandey then put on a gritty 42-run stand for the third wicket but their departure spelt trouble.

But veterans Karthik and Dhoni stayed calm in the final few overs when India needed 20 off 18 balls.

Earlier Asela Gunaratne, who top-scored 36, and Shanaka, who hit an unbeaten 29 off 24 balls, gave some respectability to the total after the visitors lost their top three batsmen for 18 runs.

Unadkat, who removed the openers early, was ably supported by fellow fast bowler Hardik Pandya as they claimed two wickets each.

Apart from the paceman, debutant off-spinner Washington Sundar, who opened the attack for India, dismissed Kusal Perera for four and ended with figures of 1-22.

After a dominant home season across all three formats, India now head for their high-profile tour of South Africa starting January 5 with the first Test in Cape Town.

 
&nbsp;

Paceman Jaydev Unadkat led a disciplined attack to set up India's five-wicket win in the third Twenty20 international against Sri Lanka

Paceman Jaydev Unadkat led a disciplined attack to set up India's five-wicket win in the third Twenty20 international against Sri Lanka as the hosts completed a 3-0 whitewash on Sunday. Unadkat returned impressive figures of 2-15 to help restrict the visitors to 135-7. India then achieved their target with four balls to spare in a tense chase at the Wankhede Stadium. Manish Pandey top-scored with 32 but it was Dinesh Karthik (18) and Mahendra Singh Dhoni (16) who put on an unbeaten 31-run stand to take the team home. The win ensured that India end the year on a high after outplaying the islanders in the Test (1-0), one-day (2-1) and T20 series. Sri Lanka however put the hosts under pressure with regular strikes as paceman Dushmantha Chameera and medium-pace bowler Dasun Shanaka claimed two wickets each. Shanaka got skipper Rohit Sharma for 27, early in the chase. The in-form Sharma hit 4 fours and a six during his 20-ball stay but his wicket silenced the crowd. Shreyas Iyer, who scored 30 before being run out while backing up at the non-strikers end, and Pandey then put on a gritty 42-run stand for the third wicket but their departure spelt trouble. But veterans Karthik and Dhoni stayed calm in the final few overs when India needed 20 off 18 balls. Earlier Asela Gunaratne, who top-scored 36, and Shanaka, who hit an unbeaten 29 off 24 balls, gave some respectability to the total after the visitors lost their top three batsmen for 18 runs. Unadkat, who removed the openers early, was ably supported by fellow fast bowler Hardik Pandya as they claimed two wickets each. Apart from the paceman, debutant off-spinner Washington Sundar, who opened the attack for India, dismissed Kusal Perera for four and ended with figures of 1-22. After a dominant home season across all three formats, India now head for their high-profile tour of South Africa starting January 5 with the first Test in Cape Town.

India beat Sri Lanka to sweep T20 series 3-0

England test captain&nbsp;and&nbsp;skipper, Alastair Cook, believes his batsmen are well-prepared to deal with Pakistan&#39;s fiery attack next month after getting plenty of practice in the middle against a weakened Sri Lanka side. 
 
England crushed Sri Lanka 2-0 in the three-test home series that concluded on Monday, facing little resistance from a team shorn of frontline pacemen Dushmantha Chameera and Dhammika Prasad through injury at different stages during the tour. 
 
However, Cook&#39;s side can expect a far bigger challenge from a formidable Pakistani pace attack spearheaded by left-armers Mohammad Amir and Wahab Riaz, supplemented by tricky leg-spinner Yasir Shah. 
 
&quot;They&#39;ve got a very good pace attack, backed up with spinners,&quot; Cook said after the rain-hit final test against Sri Lanka ended in a tame draw at Lord&#39;s. 
 
&quot;But we&#39;re ready for them. We scored a lot of runs against Australia&#39;s attack here last year. I think it&#39;s going to be a brilliant series.&quot; 
 
Amir will be returning to test cricket after serving a five-year ban following a spot-fixing scandal in England, while the four-test series will be Shah&#39;s first since he served a three-month suspension for a doping violation. 
 
Cook will also be delighted to have finally found a stable opening partner in Alex Hales, who finished the series against Sri Lanka as the second highest scorer on 292 runs from five innings. 
 
His performance marked a significant improvement by the 27-year-old Hales, who averaged just 17 in his debut test series in South Africa earlier this year as he struggled to make the transition from limited-overs cricket. 
 
&quot;Three scores of 80 and above from Alex Hales was really pleasing,&quot; Cook said of his eighth opening partner since Andrew Strauss retired in 2012. 
 
&quot;He&#39;s certainly tightened up his game from South Africa and probably just learned about test cricket.&quot; 
 
It was a satisfying series for Jonny Bairstow too, the English wicketkeeper-batsman emerging as the top-scorer and walking away with the man-of-the-series award. 
 
Cook hailed Bairstow&#39;s batting prowess but admitted the 26-year-old had room for improvement behind the stumps. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s great to have an attacking batsman coming in and taking it to the opposition. He&#39;s been very similar to Matt Prior when he was at his best.&quot; 
 
&quot;He knows how hard he has to work at his keeping... He knows a couple of chances have gone down, but you don&#39;t become a world-class wicketkeeper overnight. 
 
&quot;He&#39;s made big strides since that South Africa series and is certainly heading in the right direction.&quot; 
 
Pakistan will play four tests, five one-dayers and a Twenty20 International in England between July 14 and September 7. 
 
(Reuters)

They've just come off a 2-0 win against Lanka but Pak's pace attack is going to be a lot more fiery

England test captain and skipper, Alastair Cook, believes his batsmen are well-prepared to deal with Pakistan's fiery attack next month after getting plenty of practice in the middle against a weakened Sri Lanka side. England crushed Sri Lanka 2-0 in the three-test home series that concluded on Monday, facing little resistance from a team shorn of frontline pacemen Dushmantha Chameera and Dhammika Prasad through injury at different stages during the tour. However, Cook's side can expect a far bigger challenge from a formidable Pakistani pace attack spearheaded by left-armers Mohammad Amir and Wahab Riaz, supplemented by tricky leg-spinner Yasir Shah. "They've got a very good pace attack, backed up with spinners," Cook said after the rain-hit final test against Sri Lanka ended in a tame draw at Lord's. "But we're ready for them. We scored a lot of runs against Australia's attack here last year. I think it's going to be a brilliant series." Amir will be returning to test cricket after serving a five-year ban following a spot-fixing scandal in England, while the four-test series will be Shah's first since he served a three-month suspension for a doping violation. Cook will also be delighted to have finally found a stable opening partner in Alex Hales, who finished the series against Sri Lanka as the second highest scorer on 292 runs from five innings. His performance marked a significant improvement by the 27-year-old Hales, who averaged just 17 in his debut test series in South Africa earlier this year as he struggled to make the transition from limited-overs cricket. "Three scores of 80 and above from Alex Hales was really pleasing," Cook said of his eighth opening partner since Andrew Strauss retired in 2012. "He's certainly tightened up his game from South Africa and probably just learned about test cricket." It was a satisfying series for Jonny Bairstow too, the English wicketkeeper-batsman emerging as the top-scorer and walking away with the man-of-the-series award. Cook hailed Bairstow's batting prowess but admitted the 26-year-old had room for improvement behind the stumps. "It's great to have an attacking batsman coming in and taking it to the opposition. He's been very similar to Matt Prior when he was at his best." "He knows how hard he has to work at his keeping... He knows a couple of chances have gone down, but you don't become a world-class wicketkeeper overnight. "He's made big strides since that South Africa series and is certainly heading in the right direction." Pakistan will play four tests, five one-dayers and a Twenty20 International in England between July 14 and September 7. (Reuters)

England ready for Pakistan, says Cook