Preview:
The second edition of the World Championship of Legends is coming back with its second season and we will see our childhood cricketing heroes in action on the field again. The first match of the season will be played between England Champions (EDC) and Pakistan Champions (PKC) at Edgbaston Stadium in Birmingham on July 18. In the last edition, Pakistan Champions finished as the runners-up after losing the final against India Champions.
On the other hand, England Champions had a poor outing as they finished last in the points table and will be looking to get a winning start to their WCL campaign this year. England’s World Cup winning captain Eoin Morgan will lead England Champions while Shahid Afridi will take charge of Pakistan Champions side. Let’s have a look at fantasy cricket tips, pitch report, probable XIs, captain, vice captain and more ahead of the England Champions versus Pakistan Champions WCL 2025 1st match.
EDC vs PNC Match Details
|
Match Number |
1 |
|
Teams |
England Champions vs Pakistan Champions |
|
Venue |
Edgbaston, Birmingham |
|
Time |
9:00 PM (IST) |
EDC vs PNC Head-to-Head Stats & Records
England Champions have faced each other just once in the WCL history so far. In that game. Pakistan Champions emerged victorious by 79 runs while England Champions are yet to defeat them in the tournament.
|
Matches played |
1 |
|
England Champions won |
1 |
|
Pakistan Champions won |
0 |
EDC vs PNC Pitch Report
The surface of the Edgbaston Stadium in Birmingham provides good conditions for batting especially in the T20 format. It also comes with great swinging conditions which can turn out to be beneficial for the fast bowlers. Out of 28 T20 matches played at this ground, the team batting first won 18 times while the chasing side came out victorious on 10 occasions.
EDC vs PNC Probable Playing XIs
England Champions: Eoin Morgan (c), Alastair Cook, Ian Bell, Moeen Ali, Ravi Bopara, Dimitri Mascarenhas, Liam Plunkett, and Tim Ambrose, Usman Afzal, Mustard Phillips
Pakistan Champions: Shahid Afridi (c), Younis Khan, Shoaib Malik, Misbah-Ul-Haq, Kamran Akmal, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Iftikhar Ahmad, Wahab Riaz, Saeed Ajmal, Sohail Tanvir, Sohail Khan
EDC vs PNC WCL 2025 Full Squads
England Champions: Eoin Morgan (c), Alastair Cook, Ian Bell, Moeen Ali, Samit Patel, Ajmal Shahzad, Stuart Meaker, Chris Tremlett, Usman Afzal, Mustard Phillips, Ryan Sidebottom, Ravi Bopara, Dimitri Mascarenhas, Liam Plunkett, and Tim Ambrose.
Pakistan Champions: Shahid Afridi (c), Younis Khan, Shoaib Malik, Misbah-Ul-Haq, Sohaib Maqsood, Sharjeel Khan, Kamran Akmal, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Abdul Razzaq, Wahab Riaz, Asif Ali, Saeed Ajmal, Sohail Tanvir, Sohail Khan, and Aamer Yamin.
EDC vs PNC WCL 2025 Match 1: Top Captaincy and Vice-Captaincy Picks
Ian Bell
Last 5 T20 innings
|
Runs |
Average |
Highest Score |
|
154 |
30.8 |
97 |
Wahab Riaz
Last 5 T20 innings
|
Wickets |
Best Figures |
4-wicket haul |
|
6 |
3/22 |
0 |
EDC vs PNC WCL 2025 Match 1: Top Players to pick
Eoin Morgan: England Champions skipper Eoin Morgan will be a player to look out for in the upcoming WCL 2025 clash against Pakistan Champions in Birmingham. He was also leading run scorer for England Masters in the 2025 International Masters League amassing 146 runs from five matches. He will be looking to lead from the front in the upcoming clash.
Wahab Riaz: Fast bowler Wahab Riaz can turn out to be a crucial player for Pakistan Champions in the upcoming WCL 2025 clash against England in Birmingham. He was second highest wicket taker in the previous edition in 2024 and played a crucial part for Pakistan Champions to get into the final. He took nine wickets from seven matches in WCL 2025.
Ian Bell: England Champions batter Ian Bell was second highest run scorer in the last edition of the WCL in 2024. The right-hander scored 230 runs from five matches at an average of 76.66 and was constant performer throughout the season.
EDC vs PNC WCL 2025 Match 1: Players to avoid
Abdul Razzaq: Pakistan Champions allrounder Abdul Razzaq is unlikely to make an impact in the upcoming WCL 2025 clash against England Champions.
EDC vs PNC Fantasy Team 1 (Grand League)
Wicketkeepers: Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk)
Batters: Alastair Cook, Eoin Morgan, Ian Bell, Misbah-ul-Haq
All-Rounders: Moeen Ali, Ravi Bopara, Mohammed Hafiz
Bowlers: Sohail Tanvir, Liam Plunkett, Wahab Riaz
EDC vs PNC Fantasy Team 2 (Head-To-Head)
Wicketkeepers: Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk)
Batters: Alastair Cook, Eoin Morgan, Ian Bell, Misbah-ul-Haq, Iftikhar Ahmad, Younis Khan
All-Rounders: Moeen Ali, Mohammed Hafiz
Bowlers: Liam Plunkett, Wahab Riaz
Disclaimer: The fantasy tips and facts expressed within this article are the author's personal opinions. They do not reflect the views of SportsTiger. It is not a reflection of the actual points you might earn. SportsTiger does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.
