India Pakistan Match LIVE: India and Pakistan will take on each other on February 15. (Photo: AP)India vs Pakistan (IND vs PAK) T20 World Cup 2026 Match: After weeks on uncertainty, the India vs Pakistan game on February 15 at the T20 World Cup will happen after all! This is after the Pakistan government made a dramatic u turn on Monday evening and allowed the Pakistan cricket team to take on the defending champions India in a group stage game in Colombo.
This came after hectic negotiations between cricket officials from Pakistan and Bangladesh, and the International Cricket Council (ICC). After the negotiations ended, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) issued a press release requesting the PCB to play against India. PCB had decided to boycott the India game after Bangladesh were chucked out of the T20 World Cup for refusing to play their group stage games in India.
Not playing the India Pakistan game would have cost around $174 million dollars, including those related to broadcasters, gate money and other sponsorships, according to a report by The Indian Express’ Devendra Pandey.
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Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Pakistan's decision to play against India in the T20 World Cup, "I am a politician, but I don't like politics in cricket and sports. I think sports are a different field, a different game. Let politicians do their politics somewhere else, diplomats do their work in diplomacy, and cricket players play their game. I'm happy that at least cricket will move with this match. Who will win, and who will lose, that's another thing"
(from ANI)
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Pakistan's decision to play against India in the T20 World Cup, "I am a politician, but I don't like politics in cricket and sports. I think sports are a different field, a different game. Let politicians do their politics somewhere else, diplomats do their work in diplomacy, and cricket players play their game. I'm happy that at least cricket will move with this match. Who will win, and who will lose, that's another thing"
(from ANI)
“What was the conclusion of the politics played with the sport over the last two or three weeks? First, we must look at the pain caused to cricket fans sitting all over the world—whether it was a Bangladeshi fan, an England supporter, or someone supporting Pakistan. Fans everywhere were hurt by this decision. My only question is: who was wrong?” Hafeez said on the Game on Hai show. “Someone was at fault, yet it wasn’t disclosed whose mistake it was. Compensation is being given, but on what basis? If it’s based on a mistake, why wasn’t it admitted? Afterward, they claim they are taking this decision to protect ‘integrity and spirit.’ Where were these claimants before? The question is, why did it even take this turn?”
Minutes after it was confirmed by the Pakistan Cricket Board that Pakistan cricket team would play India in a T20 World Cup group stage game on Sunday, prices for a Mumbai-Colombo-Mumbai round trip increased by Rs 10,000 to Rs 60,000.
As Devendra Pandey reported: The cumulative loss would have been around $174 million dollars, including those related to broadcasters, gate money and other sponsorships.
BCCI Vice-President Rajeev Shukla, speaking about Pakistan agreeing to play against India at T20 World Cup, is quoted by news agency ANI as saying, "I am delighted to see the outcome of the deliberations initiated by ICC representative, supervised by the ICC Chairman and the representatives who had gone to Lahore to talk to Pakistan Cricket Board as well as Bangladesh Cricket Board. It's a good solution, an amicable solution which has been found to give priority to cricket's importance in the game. This is what has been done. So all kudos to ICC for taking this initiative, resolving the whole issue and bringing cricket back to the forefront. This is a big achievement as far as ICC is concerned.
"So I would like to thank ICC for taking this initiative and bringing Pakistan to the table, ultimately deciding for Pakistan to play in the Colombo match. It's good news for all of us and the scheduled match for 15th February in Colombo will take place. Pakistan will also play. So now this World Cup will also be a big success story. Bangladesh's feelings have also been assaged as far as these negotiations are concerned, and some relief has been given to their board, and they are also happy. In fact, they have praised ICC for its efforts. It's a win-win situation for everybody and I'm happy that the match would take place and World Cup will be a successful event."
India are the overwhelming favourites to win the game against Pakistan on Sunday in the T20 World Cup, with the head-to-head stats detailing their superiority.
Games played: 16
India win: 12 (win percentage: 75)
Pakistan win: 3 (win percentage: 18.75)
No result: 0
Tied: 1
Former India cricketer and national team coach Ravi Shastri says that Babar is fighting the weight of expectations that come along with being at the “stage of his career” that Babar is in.
“When you are at that stage of your career, there’s baggage,” said Shastri in a conversation with Ricky Ponting and Sanjana Ganesan on the latest episode of The ICC Review. “There’s a weight of expectation. People expect you to go out there and deliver. Get out there (and) in your first five balls, I don’t care if you get out, but I want you to make an effort to hit a couple of boundaries. Choose your spot, get into good positions, anticipate what the bowler is doing. You will feel a lot better and things might change.”
There is plenty of intrigue ahead of game between Pakistan and USA about the role and the contribution of talismanic star Babar Azam. In the first group stage game, Pakistan struggled their way to victory over the Netherlands when Babar, who batted at No 4, played 18 balls to score 15 at a strike rate that was just over 80.
Since that innings, there has been talk about Babar playing in the game against USA, his position in the playing XI and more.
Here's what Australian cricket legend Ricky Ponting had to say:
“It just to me looks like he’s lost a bit of his power, his ball striking ability, like taking on that spinner on the way he did and not being able to even go close to clearing it,” Ponting said in a conversation with Ravi Shastri and Sanjana Ganesan on the latest episode of The ICC Review.
“If you’re 15 off 18 balls, you’re not just putting pressure on yourself, you’re putting pressure on the guy at the other end,” Ponting continued. “The guy at the other end knows that he’s got to be the one to take up the boundary scoring. Babar needs to hit boundaries early on. He needs to get off and going, he needs two boundaries in his first six balls, otherwise the whole momentum of the game is going to change every time he goes in.”
Here's what former Pakistan cricketer Mohd Hafeez had to say about India taking on Pakistan at the T20 World Cup.
"Politics should be removed forever. India and Pakistan should be allowed to play their role in spreading and growing the game. The sport should never stop because of politics," Hafeez said on the Game on Hai show. "Furthermore, regarding the scenario of a Pakistan-India match, we always talk about keeping the integrity and spirit of the game high. If a match happens on the 15th, it should display total sportsmanship. We don't want a match played the way the Asia Cup was played; I’d rather not watch it. You won't enjoy it if the game is played without spirit. We are ambassadors of the sport; if we want to be politicians, we should go to Parliament. Only those who want to play cricket should be on the ground."
Former Pakistan player Mohd Hafeez said he was happy that India and Pakistan would play each other at the T20 World Cup after weeks of drama.
“In my opinion, whatever happened was not good for cricket. Regarding the Pakistan-India match, I am always in favor of them playing. This is the rivalry that inspires the entire world. I hope this match happens—and I hope it’s not just this one match. I want India and Pakistan matches to happen routinely,” Hafeez said on the Game On Hai show.
Former Pakistan cricketer Mohd Hafeez has slammed the ICC for its handling of the India vs Pakistan game.
"This is a total failure of the ICC and their administration. This must be accepted first. Beyond that, whether Bangladesh gets a favor, a tournament, or a participation fee—and ensuring no sanctions are placed on them—is fine. But the character who played the wrong role needs to be exposed. If they remain hidden, we might see such cases again. Unless a mistake is realized, highlighted, and accepted, you cannot improve. In this whole matter, I still don't understand who was at fault," Hafeez said on the Game on Hai show.
Former Pakistan cricketer Saqlain Mushtaq believes that the good old days of off-field camaraderie between India and Pakistan cricketers is not coming back because things have gone "too far" in India politically.
"I don’t think those things [the old spirit of the game] are coming back because things have gone too far. On the other side, they don’t want it to return; they have kept it this way specifically to polish their own politics and will continue to do so," Saqlain said on the Game On Hai show.
Former Indian cricketer Madan Lal, speaking to news agency ANI about Pakistan finally agreeing to play against India at T20 cricket World Cup, says," It is good that they are playing, else the charm of the tournament would have died, and they would have also suffered financial loss. We've heard that Bangladesh and Sri Lanka had put pressure on them. Pakistan have shaken the ICC by refusing to play the game till the last moment. Then ICC officials went ot Pakistan to meet with the board. This issue cshould have been solved in a diplomatic way much earlier."
The dark clouds over the India-Pakistan T20 World Cup game on February 15 have finally cleared. Late Monday, the Pakistan government instructed its team to take the field for the marquee game in Colombo following days of hectic negotiations between cricket officials from Pakistan and Bangladesh, and the International Cricket Council (ICC).
The talks, held in consultation with ICC chief Jay Shah, resulted in the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) urging the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to take the field against India, resulting in the Pakistan government changing its stance.
“In view of the outcomes achieved in multilateral discussions, as well as the request of friendly countries, the Government of Pakistan hereby directs the Pakistan National Cricket Team to take the field on February 15, 2026, for its scheduled fixture in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup,” the Pakistan government said in a statement.
Read the full report by Venkata Krishna B
T20 World Cup: Pakistan agreeing to play India saves ICC $174 million
The Pakistan government going back on its decision of instructing its team to boycott the game against India on February 15 in Colombo prevented a $174 million revenue loss for the International Cricket Council (ICC), sources said.
“The cumulative loss would have been around $174 million dollars, including those related to broadcasters, gate money and other sponsorships,” a source stated.
Minutes after it was confirmed that India would play Pakistan on Sunday, prices for a Mumbai-Colombo-Mumbai round trip increased by Rs 10,000 to Rs 60,000.
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