Somerset all-rounder Lewis Gregory on Thursday (July 8) made a memorable ODI debut for England in the first game against Pakistan at Cardiff.
After COVID-19 cases in the England camp forced the initial squad to go into isolation, head coach Chris Silverwood picked a new-look 18-man party just a couple of days before the ODI series opener.
Despite fielding the revised team, the hosts thrashed Pakistan by nine wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match ODI series.
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The visitors got bowled out for a paltry 141 in 35.2 overs while England overhauled the target with 169 balls to spare.
Gregory, one of five players in the England XI who were making their ODI debut, played his part in the massive victory with a miserly spell of 1-11 in four overs after being given the new ball.
Following the match, Gregory admitted that his return to international duty was eased a touch by playing against familiar opponents, having turned out for Islamabad United in this year's Pakistan Super League (PSL).
"Knowing who you are playing against and their strengths and weaknesses helps, having that experience in the PSL was amazing," Gregory told reporters on Friday.
"They have some fantastic cricketers in Pakistan. To be able to play against them before and know who you are against gives you a bit of a boost. Hopefully, we can put that into practice."
England may have fielded a fresh side but their players did have the benefit of match practice from playing in the domestic T20 Blast.
On the other hand, the Babar Azam-led team relied on one intra-squad match to prepare for the ODI series.
"It's obviously not the best preparation," Gregory acknowledged. "But they (Pakistan) have obviously been playing cricket, they've come off a delayed PSL — I don't think they've come off a couple months chilling (relaxing) back home.
"It's not easy the quarantine, I've been there, done that, it's not a nice thing to go through but we played really well."
The second will be played at Lord’s on Saturday (July 10) and Lewis Gregory expects Pakistan to bounce back in the series.
"It's different conditions than they're used to, but I'm fully expecting them to come back and rebound quickly and put us under pressure on Saturday."
(With AFP inputs)
