A thrilling takeover: What happened in the previous India vs Pakistan T20 World Cup clash?
In less than 24 hours, Team India will be locking horns with Pakistan, hoping to cement their position at the top of the Group A points table in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2026. Both sides have won their first two games, garnering crucial momentum ahead of the arch-rivals' all-important clash.
However, in the build-up to the crucial clash, a glance at the past reveals how dominant Team India has been. In the history of the T20 World Cup, both sides have clashed eight times. India has won six of those ties, with Pakistan beating them just once. Before we move to the latest chapter of this rivalry, here’s a quick look at what happened when these two teams met previously in the T20 World Cup.
In the crucial encounter, Pakistan won the toss and opted to bowl first. Their bowlers quickly vindicated the call at the flip, as India found themselves stuttering. Virat Kohli (4) and Rohit Sharma (13) fell in quick succession, reducing India to 19/2. Rishabh Pant (42) and Axar Patel (20) stitched together a solid 39-run stand, bailing the Men in Blue out of immediate jeopardy.
Despite Axar's dismissal, Pant kept fighting. But once India lost their wicket-keeper, they spiralled into despair. India were bundled out for 119, losing their last eight wickets for just 61 runs.
With fears of a second drubbing at the hands of Pakistan in the T20 World Cup's history, Indian fans had little to cheer about. Chasing what was a fairly easy total, Pakistan got off to a watchful start. Babar Azam (13) and Muhammad Rizwan (31) led the charge while the Indian bowlers kept things tight.
Bumrah got Azam's wicket, giving India their first breakthrough. An incoming Usman Khan (13) supported Rizwan, but the scoring rate hardly changed gears. The Indian bowlers started believing and they maintained a very stringent discipline, hardly allowing the Pakistani batters to break free.
Axar Patel got India their next breakthrough in the form of Usman Khan. Fakhar Zaman (13) wanted to get the wheels in motion but succumbed to Hardik Pandya. With the compass needle pointing at Rizwan to improve the scoring rate, the opener snapped under the growing pressure. Jasprit Bumrah stormed through the gates of Rizwan, leaving Pakistan wobbling at 80/4.
No matter the asking rate, Pakistan simply couldn’t conjure the required momentum and India eventually finished the game on top. They secured a thrilling 6-run win, courtesy of Jasprit Bumrah who registered figures of 4-0-14-3. Hardik Pandya came up with a brace to bookend Bumrah’ enterprise as India added another thrilling win to their glorious campaign. Bumrah walked away with the Player of the Match award for a defining performance under immense pressure.
