158/8 (20.0)
CR : 7.90
190/9 (20.0)
CR : 9.50
Pakistan won by 32 runs 🏆
Player of the Match
S Farhan
73(41)
PAK won by 32 runs
10:26 PM IST, Local Time: Revenge is a dish best served cold!!! Pakistan bury the nightmares of Dallas 2024 and defeat the USA comfortably by 32 runs at the Sinhalese Sports Club!! A one-sided encounter this time, as compared to the super over finish in the last edition! The Men in Green climb top of Group A with 2 wins in 2 matches, while the USA are all but out of the competition unless something dramatic happens.
Earlier in the evening, the USA won the toss and decided to bowl first. Saim Ayub and Sahibzada Farhan provided Pakistan a flying start, adding 54 for the first wicket, before Shadley van Schalkwyk got rid of the former for 19 off 17 balls and Salman Ali Agha for just 1 in the final over of the powerplay.
Farhan (73 off 41) went berserk, hitting 6 fours and 5 sixes and added a whirlwind partnership of 81 runs for the third-wicket along with Babar Azam, who started slowly but once he took Harmeet Singh to the cleaners in the 13th over, the Pakistani stalwart got some momentum to his knock, scoring 46 off 32 balls.
Shadab Khan came in and teed off with a cracking cameo, hitting 30 off just 12 balls. A late collapse didn't halt the momentum a bit, but Pakistan still managed to post 190/9.
Shadley van Schalkwyk impressed everyone yet again. He picked up 4/25 against India, and tonight as well, he finished with 4/25. Saurabh Netravalkar, Mohammad Mohsin, and Harmeet scalped a wicket each, while Ehsan Adil and Milind Kumar were expensive.
Andries Gous and Shayan Jahangir gave the USA a good start, but once Mohammad Nawaz took care of the former for 13, breaking the 42-run opening stand in the 5th over, they stumbled in the run chase with Pakistan using five spinners to curb the run flow.
Jahangir looked impressive for his 34-ball 49. Milind Kumar got a start and scored 29 off 22 balls. Shubham Ranjane slammed a fifty, smashing 51 off 30 balls. These three batters kept fighting for the USA. Ranjane even hit Shaheen Shah Afridi for a few in the 18th over, but it was always a mountain to climb for the USA. Eventually, they lost their way and ended up at only 158/8.
Usman Tariq picked up late wickets and picked up 3/27 on his WC debut. Shadab Khan was excellent in the middle overs and wrapped up with 2/26. A wicket each for Abrar Ahmed, Nawaz and Shaheen. The lone seamer got hit for a few, but he had plenty in the bank to defend.
Next up for Pakistan is the big fixture against India, while for the USA, it is a do-or-die game against the Netherlands!
Earlier in the evening, the USA won the toss and decided to bowl first. Saim Ayub and Sahibzada Farhan provided Pakistan a flying start, adding 54 for the first wicket, before Shadley van Schalkwyk got rid of the former for 19 off 17 balls and Salman Ali Agha for just 1 in the final over of the powerplay.
Farhan (73 off 41) went berserk, hitting 6 fours and 5 sixes and added a whirlwind partnership of 81 runs for the third-wicket along with Babar Azam, who started slowly but once he took Harmeet Singh to the cleaners in the 13th over, the Pakistani stalwart got some momentum to his knock, scoring 46 off 32 balls.
Shadab Khan came in and teed off with a cracking cameo, hitting 30 off just 12 balls. A late collapse didn't halt the momentum a bit, but Pakistan still managed to post 190/9.
Shadley van Schalkwyk impressed everyone yet again. He picked up 4/25 against India, and tonight as well, he finished with 4/25. Saurabh Netravalkar, Mohammad Mohsin, and Harmeet scalped a wicket each, while Ehsan Adil and Milind Kumar were expensive.
Andries Gous and Shayan Jahangir gave the USA a good start, but once Mohammad Nawaz took care of the former for 13, breaking the 42-run opening stand in the 5th over, they stumbled in the run chase with Pakistan using five spinners to curb the run flow.
Jahangir looked impressive for his 34-ball 49. Milind Kumar got a start and scored 29 off 22 balls. Shubham Ranjane slammed a fifty, smashing 51 off 30 balls. These three batters kept fighting for the USA. Ranjane even hit Shaheen Shah Afridi for a few in the 18th over, but it was always a mountain to climb for the USA. Eventually, they lost their way and ended up at only 158/8.
Usman Tariq picked up late wickets and picked up 3/27 on his WC debut. Shadab Khan was excellent in the middle overs and wrapped up with 2/26. A wicket each for Abrar Ahmed, Nawaz and Shaheen. The lone seamer got hit for a few, but he had plenty in the bank to defend.
Next up for Pakistan is the big fixture against India, while for the USA, it is a do-or-die game against the Netherlands!
Most Overs Bowled by Spinners in a T20 WC Match:
26.0 Overs - Australia vs Pakistan, Colombo (RPS), 2012
25.4 Overs - India vs West Indies, Mirpur, 2014
25.0 Overs - Pakistan vs West Indies, Mirpur, 2014
25.0 Overs - Sri Lanka vs Ireland, Colombo (RPS), 2026
25.0 Overs - Pakistan vs USA, Colombo (SSC), 2026, Tonight*
26.0 Overs - Australia vs Pakistan, Colombo (RPS), 2012
25.4 Overs - India vs West Indies, Mirpur, 2014
25.0 Overs - Pakistan vs West Indies, Mirpur, 2014
25.0 Overs - Sri Lanka vs Ireland, Colombo (RPS), 2026
25.0 Overs - Pakistan vs USA, Colombo (SSC), 2026, Tonight*
Player of the Match: Sahibzada Farhan
Sahibzada Farhan (POTM): "(On the mindset while going into bat first) In the practiced yesterday, the ball was coming onto my bat very nicely. I told Hanif bhai (batting coach Hanif Malik) that I will play a special innings tomorrow. I have set a target of at least 2-3 Player of the Match awards in this tournament for myself.
(On the pitch) I told Saim that this is a better pitch (than the last match). But our job is to utilise the powerplay. Saim got a start, but he was a bit unlucky. But I carried on. This is my role. This is how you play in T20s.
(On the upcoming game against India) We will go in with the same mindset as the last game of the Asia Cup. We will try to attack the same way."
(On the pitch) I told Saim that this is a better pitch (than the last match). But our job is to utilise the powerplay. Saim got a start, but he was a bit unlucky. But I carried on. This is my role. This is how you play in T20s.
(On the upcoming game against India) We will go in with the same mindset as the last game of the Asia Cup. We will try to attack the same way."
Most Overs Bowled by Pakistan Spinners in a T20I Innings:
18 overs vs Australia, Colombo (RPS), 2012
16 overs vs USA, Colombo (SSC), 2026, Tonight*
15 overs vs South Africa, Colombo (RPS), 2012
15 overs vs West Indies, Kingstown, 2013
15 overs vs England, Manchester, 2021
15 overs vs Afghanistan, Hangzhou, 2023
18 overs vs Australia, Colombo (RPS), 2012
16 overs vs USA, Colombo (SSC), 2026, Tonight*
15 overs vs South Africa, Colombo (RPS), 2012
15 overs vs West Indies, Kingstown, 2013
15 overs vs England, Manchester, 2021
15 overs vs Afghanistan, Hangzhou, 2023
Monank Patel (USA captain): "I thought we bowled pretty decently in the powerplay, but we did not bowl well in the middle overs. I thought the pace bowlers did well in the last 4 overs. I thought with 190 we were still in the game. We batted well in the powerplay but we could not show the intent in the middle.
(Where were the shortcomings?) While we were batting, I think we did not show enough intent. Their spinners were not giving much pace on the ball. It was hard to take the boundary options. We panicked a bit and that cost us the game.
(On the confidence coming into this game) We have been playing really good cricket in the past 12 months. Coming here for the second game, we were quite confident. Every one was in good shape. But we made small mistakes. We will reflect on what mistakes we have been doing. We want to finish the World Cup well with 2 wins.
(On the challenge of playing at different venues) It is not easy to play at different venues and especially for the first time. Now, we will go to Chennai, where we will have one session. We will work hard there, understand the conditions and come back stronger."
(Where were the shortcomings?) While we were batting, I think we did not show enough intent. Their spinners were not giving much pace on the ball. It was hard to take the boundary options. We panicked a bit and that cost us the game.
(On the confidence coming into this game) We have been playing really good cricket in the past 12 months. Coming here for the second game, we were quite confident. Every one was in good shape. But we made small mistakes. We will reflect on what mistakes we have been doing. We want to finish the World Cup well with 2 wins.
(On the challenge of playing at different venues) It is not easy to play at different venues and especially for the first time. Now, we will go to Chennai, where we will have one session. We will work hard there, understand the conditions and come back stronger."
Salman Ali Agha (Pakistan Captain): "I always smile. When do you see me not smiling? (chuckles). I think it was a clinical performance from us. We started really well in the powerplay and we batted really well in the middle as well. In the last game we were not good in the middle phase but today we batted really well. We finished off the innings brilliantly too. In terms of our bowling, we have a world class bowling attack. We knew that once we score 190, we can defend it.
I was always looking to bat first. If I would've won the toss, I would've opted to bat first because I know the bowling I have, if I score 160-170 we can win the game with that score as well. When we scored 190, we knew that it was well above par.
(Are you comfortable chasing as well?) We are Pakistani. We do things differently than the rest of the world. We are very comfortable with chasing as well. We have done that previously as well. We are now trying to bat first, score a big total and then defend it later on.
(On the batting order) We have a very flexible batting order. The top 3 are probably going to go order wise and after that we decide according to the situation. We have a very flexible batting line-up. We have quality finishers too who can go early if needed.
(On things to improve) Yeah, there is always room for improvement. We like to obviously bowl well in the powerplay. We were good in patches. These are the kind of things which we want to do well. We will reflect on it in the team meeting and will look to do better in the next game."
I was always looking to bat first. If I would've won the toss, I would've opted to bat first because I know the bowling I have, if I score 160-170 we can win the game with that score as well. When we scored 190, we knew that it was well above par.
(Are you comfortable chasing as well?) We are Pakistani. We do things differently than the rest of the world. We are very comfortable with chasing as well. We have done that previously as well. We are now trying to bat first, score a big total and then defend it later on.
(On the batting order) We have a very flexible batting order. The top 3 are probably going to go order wise and after that we decide according to the situation. We have a very flexible batting line-up. We have quality finishers too who can go early if needed.
(On things to improve) Yeah, there is always room for improvement. We like to obviously bowl well in the powerplay. We were good in patches. These are the kind of things which we want to do well. We will reflect on it in the team meeting and will look to do better in the next game."
That is the end of our coverage from Day 4 of the T20 World Cup 2026! The Netherlands thumped Namibia to start the triple-header on Tuesday. New Zealand steamrolled the UAE by 10 wickets before Pakistan brushed aside the USA in the first-ever day-night fixture at the Sinhalese Sports Club.
Tomorrow, we have three mouth-watering fixtures. South Africa take on Afghanistan in the morning game in Ahmedabad, following which Australia kick off their campaign against Ireland in Colombo. To close out the evening, we have a re-match of the 2016 T20 WC final - England locking horns with the West Indies at the Wankhede Stadium.
For now, this is me, AkshayaKrishna Polya, signing off on behalf of my co-commentators, Pritam Dey and Darpan Tikiya, scorer Manish Bishnoi and statistician Aman. We will meet again. Until then, it is cheers!
Tomorrow, we have three mouth-watering fixtures. South Africa take on Afghanistan in the morning game in Ahmedabad, following which Australia kick off their campaign against Ireland in Colombo. To close out the evening, we have a re-match of the 2016 T20 WC final - England locking horns with the West Indies at the Wankhede Stadium.
For now, this is me, AkshayaKrishna Polya, signing off on behalf of my co-commentators, Pritam Dey and Darpan Tikiya, scorer Manish Bishnoi and statistician Aman. We will meet again. Until then, it is cheers!