Dawid Malan set England up for a convincing victory over Pakistan in the decider at the end of their seven-match series
Lahore: England 209-3, Pakistan 142-8 - England win by 67 runs
Dawid Malan's 78 set England on their way to a 67-run victory over Pakistan at Lahore to win the seven-match series in the decider.
Pakistan's reliance on Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan was exposed again in a chase that never got going. Both fell in the powerplay – Babar to Chris Woakes, Rizwan to Reece Topley – after England had once again displayed their batting depth.
Malan was ably supported by Harry Brook, who did no harm to his claims for a starting World Cup berth, capping a strong series with 46 not out to end as England's leading run-scorer.
Earlier, Phil Salt and Alex Hales had started strongly before Pakistan's bowlers briefly came to life. Mohammad Hasnain removed Hales, who was trapped in front as he looked to pull, before Salt was run out by a direct hit from Shadab Khan, who would later suffer a muscle injury, after a miscommunication left the opener stranded.
Ben Duckett strengthened his case to be part of England's middle-order plans going forward – he isn't in the squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup – with an accomplished 30, but he was the victim of some sensational work from Rizwan, whose quick thinking ended a 61-run partnership with Malan.
Ben Duckett has had an excellent series (Aamir Qureshi/AFP via Getty Images)
It was then left to Malan and Brook to power England past 200, although Haris Rauf was unlucky to go wicketless as he had two catches dropped off his bowling.
The reply never got going once Babar and Rizwan fell inside the first two overs. Iftikhar Ahmed was the third man to go in the powerplay, edging David Willey behind, and Adil Rashid ended his personal wicket-taking drought by having Khushdil Shah strangled down the legside.
His spell of 1 for 25 left Pakistan needing 18 runs per over for the last seven, which was never a likely outcome. Asif Ali, Mohammad Nawaz and Mohammad Wasim came and went, with Shan Masood's half century in vain as England sealed a historic series victory in emphatic fashion.
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