NOTTINGHAM, United Kingdom: England captain Eoin Morgan played a straight bat when asked about the chances of bolstering his pace attack for the side’s second World Cup match against Pakistan at Trent Bridge on Monday.
The way Pakistan’s batsmen were undone by a barrage of bouncers from the West Indies in their opening defeat has led to suggestions England could recall fast bowler Mark Wood.
But given World Cup hosts and favorites England started their campaign with a 104-run thrashing of South Africa at the Oval on Thursday, they may decide to stick with a winning formula rather, than bring Wood in alongside fellow 90 mph plus paceman Jofra Archer.
“I think there’s a good case for playing any of our bowlers,” Morgan told reporters at Trent Bridge on Sunday. “We’ll have to adapt to anything the wicket throws up.
“If there is anything to exploit, hopefully we’ll select the right team.”
But Morgan was well aware of the attraction of an Archer-Wood partnership.
“It is exciting. It’s like saying can you add a Jason Roy 180 to a Jos Buttler 150 off 70 or 80 balls — it might happen and if it does that would be awesome.”
England have twice set world records for the highest score in a one-day international at Nottinghamshire’s headquarters — posting 444 for three against Pakistan in 2016 before closing in on the 500 barrier with 481 for six against world champions Australia last year.
“To get something near that you need to play unbelievably well,” said Morgan. “It starts with the very basics with getting yourself into an innings and each batter starting and trying to establish a partnership.”
England’s final series before the World Cup saw them whitewash Pakistan 4-0. The 1992 Word Cup champions then suffered their 11th straight loss in a completed ODI against on Friday against the West Indies.
But having seen his England side beaten by eventual tournament winners Pakistan in the semifinals of the 2017 Champions Trophy in Cardiff, Morgan was taking nothing for granted.
“We’re preparing for Pakistan at their best,” the Dubliner insisted.
“Only two years ago they were the best side in the Champions Trophy, they turned us over, they turned India over. We’ll be preparing as best we can for their A-game.”
Morgan keeps pace cards close to his chest ahead of Pakistan clash
Morgan keeps pace cards close to his chest ahead of Pakistan clash
- In opening match, Pakistan's batsmen were undone by a barrage of bouncers from the West
- England have twice set world records for the highest score in ODI at Nottinghamshire
Security forces kill four militants in Pakistan’s volatile southwest, military says
- Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest province by land area bordering Iran and Afghanistan, has long been the site of a low-level insurgency
- The Balochistan government has recently established a threat assessment center to strengthen early warning, prevent ‘terrorism’ incidents
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani security forces gunned down four militants in an intelligence-based operation in the southwestern Balochistan province, the military said on Tuesday.
The operation was conducted in Balochistan’s Kalat district on reports about the presence of militants, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Pakistani military’s media wing.
The “Indian-sponsored militants” were killed in an exchange of fire during the operation, while weapons and ammunition were also recovered from the deceased, who remained actively involved in numerous militant activities.
“Sanitization operations are being conducted to eliminate any other Indian-sponsored terrorist found in the area,” the ISPR said in a statement.
There was no immediate response from New Delhi to the statement.
Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest province by land area bordering Iran and Afghanistan, has long been the site of a low-level insurgency involving Baloch separatist groups, including the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and the Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF).
Pakistan accuses India of supporting these separatist militant groups and describes them as “Fitna Al-Hindustan.” New Delhi denies the allegation.
The government in Balochistan has also established a state-of-the-art threat assessment center to strengthen early warning and prevention against “terrorism” incidents, a senior official said this week.
“Information that was once scattered is now shared and acted upon in time, allowing the state to move from reacting after incidents to preventing them before they occur,” Balochistan Additional Chief Secretary Hamza Shafqaat wrote on X.
The development follows a steep rise in militancy-related deaths in Pakistan in 2025. According to statistics released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) last month, combat-related deaths in 2025 rose 73 percent to 3,387.
These included 2,115 militants, 664 security forces personnel, 580 civilians and 28 members of pro-government peace committees, the think tank said.
