- England lost their last T20 series 3-2 against the West Indies
- Phil Salt scored 435 runs in the Indian Premier League this season
- Recommended bet: England to have highest opening partnership

England were crowned champions in the 2022 edition of the T20 World Cup but a lot has changed since then and they will be eager to string together some wins against Pakistan ahead of their title defence next month.

The 2024 T20 World Cup will take place in the West Indies and the USA but England will first take on Pakistan in a four-match T20 series on their own patch, starting with Wednesday's match at Headingley.

England's last T20 series ended in a 3-2 defeat to the West Indies, while Pakistan recently played out a three-match series with Ireland, prevailing 2-1.

Team news

A number of England players have left the IPL to join up with the squad ahead of this series, including Will Jacks, Jos Buttler and Phil Salt.

Liam Livingstone, meanwhile, is nursing a knee injury and is hoping to be fit in time for the T20 World Cup.

Pace bowler Haris Rauf is expected to return from injury to feature for Pakistan in the first match of this T20 series.

The stats

England batsman Phil Salt was one of the standout players in the IPL this season, scoring 435 runs in 12 innings for the Kolkata Knight Riders.

England lost their most recent T20 series 3-2 against the West Indies in December last year.

As for Pakistan, they have won four and lost three of their last six completed T20 assignments, winning their most recent series 2-1 against Ireland.

Prediction

England have just four matches before they begin their T20 World Cup title defence against Scotland in June and they will be desperate to make a positive start against Pakistan on Wednesday.

The first match of the T20 series will take place at Headingley and it is a good chance for head coach Matthew Mott and captain Jos Buttler to experiment with the squad ahead of the T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA.

But as England begin to settle on their best team for the tournament, their opening combination of Phil Salt and Buttler is unlikely to change.

Buttler is a real power-hitter and was an integral part of the title-winning team in 2022, scoring 225 runs.

As for Salt, he comes into this England team fresh from a remarkable IPL campaign in which he scored 435 runs for the Kolkata Knight Riders.

Salt and Buttler should make a dangerous opening pair at next month's T20 World Cup and in this series with Pakistan and they are worth backing to achieve the highest opening partnership.

In their five-match series with the West Indies in December, Buttler and Salt put on first-wicket stands of 77, nine, 115, 117 and 24 and they can impress again.

Back England to have highest opening partnership at 3/4 with LiveScore Bet.