Colombo, February 15: In a thrilling encounter at the R. Premadasa Stadium, India faced Pakistan in the group stage of the T20 World Cup 2026. Batting first, the Indian team scored 175 runs for the loss of 7 wickets.
Pakistan won the toss and opted to bowl first. India’s start was rocky, losing their first wicket early with Abhishek Sharma dismissed for a duck after facing just four balls, leaving the team at a mere 1 run.
However, Ishan Kishan and Tilak Varma formed a formidable partnership, adding 87 runs for the second wicket in just 46 balls. Ishan played a spectacular innings, scoring 77 runs off 40 balls, which included 3 sixes and 10 fours.
Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav contributed 38 runs for the third wicket. Tilak struggled during his innings, scoring 25 runs off 24 balls before being dismissed. Just after Tilak’s exit, India lost Hardik Pandya for a duck on the very next ball.
Suryakumar Yadav and Shivam Dube added 33 runs for the fifth wicket. Suryakumar was dismissed for 32 runs off 29 balls, while Shivam Dube scored 27 runs off 17 balls, helping India reach a total of 175 runs.
Given the initial momentum and Ishan Kishan’s explosive batting, a score near 200 seemed possible. However, after Ishan’s dismissal, the run rate slowed down, leaving the team 20 to 25 runs short of a more competitive total.
Pakistan utilized six spin bowlers during the innings, with Saeem Ayub taking 3 wickets, while Salman Agha, Usman Tariq, and Shaheen Afridi each claimed 1 wicket.
Deependra Singh Chundawat is a Senior Sub-Editor at Udaipur Kiran, specializing in a wide range of technology topics including mobile phones, applications, gaming, PCs, and wearables. Along with covering the latest tech news, he also creates engaging web stories. Passionate about emerging technologies, he stays up to date with the newest trends and enjoys reading and writing about the latest mobile launches and digital innovations.
