India posted 175/5 in their allotted 20 overs against Pakistan in a blockbuster 2026 T20 World Cup encounter at the R Premadasa International Stadium in Colombo.
After winning the toss, Pakistan inflicted a poor start on India with Abhishek Sharma’s dismissal in the very first over.
The left-hander was caught for a duck in an interesting move from skipper Salman Ali Agha, who himself decided to bowl the opening over.
After an early wicket, Ishan Kishan unleashed fireworks that Pakistan could not control till the halfway mark of the innings.
He forged a 87 run partnership off 46 with Tilak Varma to keep India afloat. The pair brought the scorecard to 88 in 8.4 overs.
Kishan played the aggressor role while Varma played the second fiddle.
Pakistan managed to hold on as the stand eventually culminated with Kishan’s wicket.
He remained the top-scorer with a sublime 77 from 40, peppered with 10 fours and three sixes.
Despite the wicket, India carried on the momentum as skipper Suryakumar Yadav stitched a cautious 38-run stand with Varma.
India were 126 in 14.2 overs when Saim Ayub turned the game with his double-wicket over.
The right-arm off-spinner removed Varma and Haridk Pandya on back-to-back deliveries to make a strong comeback.
Varma made a sluggish 25 from 24 with the aid of a six and two fours, whereas Pandya was caught on long off for a duck.
Consequently, India suddenly slumped to 126-4 in 14.3 overs.
Skipper Yadav went on to make 29-ball 32 while late cameo from Shivam Dube with a 17-ball 27 helped India post a competitive total.
For Pakistan, Saim Ayub picked up 3/25.
Meanwhile, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake arrived at the R Premadasa Stadium accompanied by high-level dignitaries to watch the India-Pakistan encounter earlier this evening.
The President was accompanied by Minister of Foreign Affairs Vijitha Herath and Minister of Sports Sunil Kumara Gamage.
The Chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC), Shammi Silva, the President of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) and Mohsin Naqvi and the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) were also at the VIP box at the Premadasa International Stadium where the blockbuster India-Pakistan encounter is taking place.
Pakistan won the toss and elected to bowl first against India in the Group A encounter.
Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav continued his team’s policy of not shaking hands with his Pakistani counterpart Salman Ali Agha at the toss before a packed Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.
Both Pakistan and India have so far played two matches in the tournament, gaining four points each; however, the Indian side currently tops the points table courtesy of their net run rate, with Pakistan in the second spot.
Historically, the two teams have faced each other 16 times in the shortest format, with India leading the head-to-head record with 13 wins, while Pakistan emerged victorious thrice.
The match will mark the first time both teams will be facing each other since last year’s Asia Cup final, a tense event staged following military conflict between India and Pakistan that nearly escalated into a fully-fledged war between the nuclear-armed neighbours.
The latest meeting comes against the backdrop of a tumultuous fortnight in which Pakistan’s boycott threat — later reversed — nearly blew a hole in the tournament’s marquee fixture.
Playing XIs
India: Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan(w), Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy and Jasprit Bumrah.
Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Agha(c), Babar Azam, Mohammad Nawaz, Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Usman Khan(w), Shaheen Afridi, Abrar Ahmed and Usman Tariq.
