Brief Scores: World Cup T20, IND vs PAK: India (175/7) beat Pakistan (114 all out in 18 overs) by 61 runs in a Group A match at the R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo.
IND vs PAK: Complete Score | Highlighting
Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson explained why the team retained Usman Tariq during the T20 World Cup Group A match against India on Sunday, February 15, at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. Tariq was expected to be Pakistan’s trump card in the marquee encounter, but the mystery spinner was not introduced until the 11th over, when Ishan Kishan had already given India a flying start.
Despite a late entry, Tariq performed a tidy spell. He dismissed Suryakumar Yadav and returned impressive figures of 4-0-24-1. But despite his efforts Pakistan slumped to a 61-run defeat. Hesson said Tariq is most effective when batsmen try to attack him. He added that the team has backed Abrar Ahmed and Shadab Khan to impress after the over.
“Usman has a very specific role for us and he’s excellent when the batsmen go after him. Could he have jumped after the over? Yes. But Abrar Ahmed and Shadab Khan did a very good job for us after the over. They each had overs that didn’t go their way in terms of length, but I’d back them any day. It didn’t work today, it didn’t work in the press conference, Usman Tariq was exceptional in the press conference.
DID PAKISTAN MAKE A MISTAKE IN THE TOSS?
Prior to the match, all three games in the Premadasa tournament were won by the teams batting first, with the chasing sides ending up on the losing side. Despite this trend, Salman Agha opted to bowl after winning the toss.
However, Hesson played down the importance of the toss, saying the result was determined more by the execution on the field and Ishan Kishan’s 77 off 40 balls which proved to be the deciding factor.
“No. The ball was spinning half as much in the second innings and sliding further. There was nothing wrong with the decision. It was about the execution in the first six overs and the way Ishan bowled. The pitch didn’t slow down, it spun less. It wasn’t pitching – it was execution.”
The defeat – the heaviest in T20I history between India and Pakistan – saw Pakistan slip to third in the table, with their net run rate dropping to -0.403. They now have to win their last league game against Namibia on February 18 to qualify for the Super 8 live.
T20 World Cup | T20 World Cup Schedule | T20 World Cup Points Table | T20 World Cup Videos | Cricket News | Live Score
– The end
Issued by:
sabyasachi chowdhury
Published on:
February 15, 2026