Pakistan’s Shaheen Shah Afridi celebrates with teammates (AP/PTI) Former India opener Virender Sehwag bluntly dismissed Pakistan’s chances of reaching the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup 2026 and said he does not see Salman Ali Agha’s side achieving the desired miracle.Pakistan are still mathematically alive in the fight for the last four thanks to England’s Super 8 win over New Zealand in Colombo on Friday. However, their lower net run speed leaves them with a steep climb. Even if they beat Sri Lanka, they would only be tied on points with New Zealand unless they secured a massive win that would overturn the Black Caps’ sheer speed.
T20 World Cup: Shaheen Shah Afridi press conference after England vs Pakistan
The qualifying equation is daunting. If Pakistan bat first and score 160, they must win by at least 65 runs. If they chase the same total, they need to complete the job in 13.2 overs to move ahead of New Zealand and seal their semi-final spot.During a discussion on Cricbuzz, when the moderator outlined Pakistan’s scenario if they bat first, Sehwag bluntly replied, “Nahi hone wala. Aage padh (Not going to happen, read on).”When attention shifted to the possibility of a chase, Sehwag was equally dismissive. “Wo bhi nahi hone wala. (That too will not happen).”Elaborating further, Show said, “It’s not going to happen, that’s what I was saying. It’s not that easy for Pakistan. Prayers might have been accepted for the England-New Zealand match. But prayers won’t work for Pakistan in the Sri Lanka match. They prayed for so long and it didn’t work. So I don’t think it’s possible anymore,” Czzwag on Sehric.Sehwag added that Pakistan’s only realistic route would involve Sri Lanka playing extremely poorly, essentially handing the game to them. He questioned how a team that had been constantly trying to reach 160 could suddenly be chasing that target at breakneck speed.“If they somehow qualify, very well. If they score 160 and then win by 60 runs, Sri Lanka would have to play some bad cricket. They would need to be bowled out for 90, which is not possible. Chasing a total in 13.2 overs is possible, but their batting is not like that,” he added.“Pakistan are not able to score 160 anyway, how will they chase the total in 14 overs? It will be tough,” he added.England have already secured top spot in Group 2 of the Super 8 stage and secured a place in the semi-finals. The remaining qualifying spot from the group will be decided between Pakistan and New Zealand.
