By N Chandra Mohan, The writer is an economic and business commentator based in New Delhi
Nothing can dampen the excitement—not even prohibitive airfares to Colombo—of the India-Pakistan cricket match on Sunday in the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. This is a keenly contested rivalry that is eagerly watched by millions on television in the sub-continent and in packed stadia, much like the Ashes series between England and Australia. But this time the bitterness of sub-continental politics threatened to derail the encounter when Pakistan refused to play India in solidarity with Bangladesh that had opted out of playing in Indian venues. Fortunately, tense late-night meetings with financial inducements thrown in for good measure sorted out this matter with the ICC speaking loftily of being “united, committed, and purposeful in aspirations to serve the best interests of the game with integrity, neutrality, and cooperation”.
Let’s hope the much-awaited encounter at the Premadasa stadium will also be in the right spirit with the captains of both sides shaking hands after tossing the coin to decide whether to bowl or bat first. It was a disappointment to ardent cricket lovers that this did not happen during Asia Cup 2025, with the Indian captain also refusing take the trophy from the Pakistani chairman of that cricketing event. Nothing detracts more from the spirit of the game when these matches descend to war by other means. In the ICC Men’sT20 World Cup, the head-to-head record between the two nations stands 7 to 1 in India’s favour. Pakistan registered its first-ever win against India in 2021. India hoisted the trophy in 2007 and 2024 while Pakistan did so in 2009.
All of this does not imply that the odds are in India’s favour on Sunday. Past performance is no guide for predicting how both teams will fare on a particular day. The forthcoming encounter, however, bids fair to be highly competitive as both nations are fielding relatively younger sides with very few older players in their teams. If the yesteryear X factor for Pakistan was its world-class pace attack, only Shaheen Shah Afridi leads the charge. No one would have guessed that its wicket-taking options are now with its spin quintet, comprising Abrar Ahmed, Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz and the so-called “two-elbowed” slinger, Usman Tariq, whose arm action is much like Namibian skipper Gerhard Erasmus.
In their earlier group encounter with the US, for instance, Pakistan deployed its new arsenal represented by dashing opening batsman, Sahibzada Farhan, who is their latest six-hitting sensation and seventh in the nation’s all-time list. Farhan “hits sixes. Long languid ones over long on, bent-kneed haymakers over cow corner, flat-batted bashes that cannon into the advertising billboards beyond long off”, rhapsodised ESPNcricinfo’s Andrew Fidel Fernando. But Pakistan’s victory over the Americans was due to its potent spin attack. The US simply did not know how to handle spin in as many as 16 out of the 20 overs although their batsmen managed to hit 42 runs from Afridi’s four-over fiery pace spell.
The upshot is that India clearly has to make a match of it on Sunday. To be sure, its relatively younger side also has an X factor with its swashbuckling top order of batsmen who can hit the ball out of the park. But it is fragile and can crumble against pressure, as was evident in India’s first group match against the US, leaving it to captain Suryakumar Yadav to single-handedly fashion a match-winning innings. The batting side is also vulnerable to spin. In their match against Namibia, as many as four leading batsmen perished to the wiles of Erasmus. The eternal wait for the ball to be delivered by Tariq will not be easy for our batsmen who prefer to come down the wicket to take the aerial route. There is no telling which of these teams will prevail but there is only a promise of edge-of-the seat stuff for an exciting match.
Disclaimer: The views expressed are the author’s own and do not reflect the official policy or position of Financial Express.