Colombo’s R Premadasa Stadium witnessed another chapter in the fierce India-Pakistan rivalry, as the Men in Blue scripted a 61-run massacre in T20 World Cup 2026 Match 27. Securing their hat-trick of wins, India punched their ticket to the Super 8s, leaving Pakistan reeling.
Prior successes against USA (29 runs) and Namibia (93 runs) had built unbreakable confidence. India’s league campaign concludes against Netherlands on February 18, but this statement victory over rivals steals the spotlight.
Bowled first after losing the toss, India overcame an early blow—Abhishek Sharma’s golden duck—to rack up 175/7. Ishan Kishan was the architect of recovery, smashing 77 off 40 (10×4, 3×6) in a 87-run alliance with Tilak Varma (25) off 46 deliveries, pushing the score to 88.
Suryakumar Yadav’s captain’s knock of 32 off 29 fueled partnerships: 38 with Varma and 33 with Shivam Dube (27). Rinku Singh’s unbeaten 11 off 4 provided the finish. Pakistan’s Saim Ayub (3/–) led the attack, with Salman Agha, Shaheen Afridi, and Usman Tariq taking one each.
Pakistan’s chase imploded spectacularly. Sahibzada Farhan out for nought on ball four, three down at 13. Usman Khan’s gritty 44 (34 balls, 6×4, 1×6) included stands of 21 with Babar (5) and 39 with Shadab (14), but 73/5 spelled doom. They folded at 114 in 18 overs.
Hardik Pandya, Bumrah, Axar Patel, and Varun Chakaravarthy shared eight wickets (2 each), Kuldeep and Tilak one. This triumph not only boosts morale but reaffirms India’s bowling depth and batting firepower ahead of the Super 8 knockout phase.