By Staff Reporter
KARACHI: India and Pakistan, the nuclear-armed neighbors whose cricket rivalry often transcends sport, have been drawn into the same group for the T20 World Cup, setting up a high-stakes clash on Feb. 15 in Colombo, the International Cricket Council announced on Tuesday.
The defending champion India and Pakistan were placed in Group A of the 20-team tournament, which is being co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka, according to the schedule released by the ICC in Mumbai.
The matchup will mark the first time the two teams have faced off since their three tense encounters at the 2025 Asia Cup in the United Arab Emirates, where players skipped the customary handshake at the toss and post-match greetings. That Asia Cup was itself the first meeting between the sides since a deadly border conflict in May between the two countries, which have fought three wars since their independence from Britain in 1947.
Under a compromise agreement, Pakistan will play all its matches in Sri Lanka, allowing both nations to compete at neutral venues in multinational tournaments amid ongoing political tensions. The tournament, cricket’s premier short-format event, will run from Feb. 7 to March 8, with games spread across five venues in India and three in Sri Lanka.
India, the world’s most populous nation and the epicenter of T20 cricket through its lucrative Indian Premier League, which attracts top global stars, enters as the reigning champion after defeating South Africa by seven runs in the 2024 final in Barbados.
The format mirrors last year’s: 20 teams divided into four groups, followed by a Super Eights phase, with the top two from each group advancing to the playoffs.The final will be held on March 8, either in Ahmedabad or Colombo, depending on whether Pakistan reaches that stage.
Indian fans are hoping for a repeat of the men’s team’s 2011 triumph in the 50-over World Cup on home soil in Mumbai. The country’s women’s team provided inspiration this month by winning their first World Cup title, defeating South Africa in the final in Mumbai.
The broadcaster JioHotstar reported that viewing figures for the women’s final on its app matched those of the men’s 2024 T20 World Cup summit clash, a “staggering 185 million users,” according to the ICC. Joining the hosts India and Sri Lanka are the top finishers from 2024: Australia, England, South Africa, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, the United States and the West Indies.
From Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe qualified. Europe will be represented by Ireland, the Netherlands and, for the first time, Italy. Also competing are Nepal, Oman and the United Arab Emirates. Ahmedabad, in the western Indian state of Gujarat, hosts the world’s largest cricket stadium, a 130,000-seat arena named after Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The city is poised to host the 2030 Commonwealth Games, with a final announcement expected on Wednesday. India has broader ambitions, having submitted a formal letter of intent last year to the International Olympic Committee to bid for the 2036 Summer Olympics.
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