T20 World Cup: India beat Pakistan to enter Super 8s

Indian bowlers came up with a fine performance while Ishan Kishan shone with the bat as Men in Blue defeated Pakistan by 61 runs in the T20 World Cup in Colombo on Sunday.

The victory meant India booked their berth to the Super 8s.

Chasing 176 to win, Pakistan were in trouble early losing three wickets for just 13 runs with Jasprit Bumrah accounting for two and Pandya claiming one.

The early setback was too much for Pakistan to handle as they failed to recover from it with wickets falling at regular interval.

Usman Khan scored a gritty 44 off 34 balls as Pakistan could manage only 114 in 18 overs.

Earlier, India put on 175/4 in 20 overs after Ishan Kishan fired 77 off 40 balls that also saw a late fight back from Pakistan.

India captain Suryakumar Yadav and his Pakistan skipper Salman Agha did not shake hands at the coin toss.

India opening batsman Abhishek Sharma returned after a stomach bug but only lasted four balls before falling without scoring.

Kishan was unperturbed by the loss of his partner and set about an assault on the Pakistan bowlers, bringing up his fifty off 27 balls with two sixes and seven fours.

India had looked set for a total in excess of 200 while Kishan had been at the crease. But his departure enabled Pakistan to put the brakes on India’s batsmen before a last fire work from Rinku Singh saw India reach a challenging total.

That's it. The chase has been a disaster for Pakistan as they succumb to 114 in 18 overs. The victory means India are through to the Super 8s with three wins from as many matches.

Varun Chakravarthy on a hat-trick as he traps Abrar Ahmed the very next ball. Pakistan 97/9 in 15.4 overs.

India in complete control now as Pakistan lose their eighth wicket. Faheem Ashraf offers a simple catch to Rinku Singh in the deep. Pakistan 97/8 in 15.3 overs.

Pakistan need some big shots as they limp to 94/7 in 15 overs. Runs have completely dried up. Shaheen Afridi can hit some big ones. Can he turn the tables for Pakistan? They need 82 from 30 balls.

It looks all over now for Pakistan as they continue to crumble. Another catch for Shivam Dube in the deep and Pakistan now reduced to 78/7 in 12.1 overs.

Nothing going right for Pakistan at the moment as Mohammad Nawaz departs. Kuldeep picks his first wicket. From here things are going to be really difficult needing 98 runs off 50 balls with just four wickets in hand.

Usman Khan was looking in fine form, but he has departed giving Axar Patel his second wicket. Great work from keeper Ishan Kishan. Pakistan now need 103 from 55 balls. Pakistan 73/5 in 10.5 overs.

Things are going very slow for Pakistan with runs coming in with just ones and twos and that occasional boundary. Usman Khan is holding it up for Pakistan batting at 25 off 21 balls. Pakistan 47/4 in 7 overs.

Nothing going right for Pakistan as their dependable Babar Azam departs. Axar Patel takes the big wicket. Pakistan 34/4 in 4.5 overs

There will be lot of pressure on Babar Azam as Pakistan need a big partnership if they are to get back into this match. Pakistan 25/3 in 4 overs.

Nothing is going right for Pakistan at the moment as they are falling like a pack of cards. Another huge blow as skipper Salman Agha departs after a terrible slog offering a simple catch to Pandya. Pakistan 13/3 in 2 overs.

Another big blow for Pakistan as they lose their second wicket. Pakistan is in deep trouble as Bumrah traps Saim Ayub. They take a review and it's of no help. Pakistan 6-2 in 1.2 overs

Pakistan didn't have the best of the start losing their first wicket. Shaibzada Farhan goes for a big one against Pandya and offers a simple catch to Rinku Singh. Pakistan 0/1 in 0.4 overs

Late fireworks from Rinku Singh ensures India manage to reach 175 for 7 in 20 overs. The last two deliveries of the innings see two wickets fall as Shivam Dube and Axar Patel depart. It's still a challenging total for Pakistan. India will need some early wickets to put pressure on Pakistan and the Men in Green will need to get some good partnerships.

India loses another wicket as skipper Suryakumar Yadav departs. With the pressure building up he tries to accelerate the innings but holes one in the deep. Yadav scored 32 off 29 balls. India 159/5 in 18.5 overs.

India unable to accelerate their scoring rate. Brilliant bowling from Pakistan. A six from Shivam Dube sends some relief but the run rate has dropped drastically in the last five overs. Suryakumar Yadav batting on 32 while Dubai on 18. India 154/4 in 18 overs.

The run flow has drastically fallen for India. Two quick wickets have turned it into Pakistan's favour. Can Suryakumar Yadav come up with some magic like he did in the opener. Dube at the other end slowly settling in. India 136/4 in 16 overs.

Double blow for India as Hardik Pandya departs the very first ball. Easy catch for Babar Azam in the deep. This could be trouble for India as they lose the big hitter. India 126/4 in 14.3 overs.

India loses Tilak Varma after Saim Ayub traps him in front. India 126/3 in 14.2 overs.

Suryakumar Yadav (21) and Tilak Varma (25) share 37 runs for the third wicket. India will need some big hitting towards the last part of the innings. India 125/2 in 14 overs.

Will Usman Tariq turn it around for Pakistan. Tariq, discussed widely for his unusual bowling action, is giving the Indian batters a tough time. His first over costs him just six runs. Meanwhile, Tilak Varma chugs on with a 19-ball 21 while skipper Suryakumar Yadav is on 9 off 9 balls. India 108/2 in 12 overs.

India's batting at half way mark is looking strong with still a strong depth of batters to come along. India 92/2 in 10 overs

Ishan Kishan's brilliant innings comes to an end as Saim Ayub cleans him up. But Kishan has laid the foundation for India with a 77 off 40 balls including 10 boundaries and three sixes. India 88/2 in 8.4 overs

Ishan Kishan's 27-ball 50 breaks Yuvraj Singh's record against Pakistan. Yuvraj scored it in 29 balls in Ahmedabad in 2012.

Fastest 50s in Ind-Pak T20Is (by balls)

• 23 Mohd Hafeez Ahmedabad 2012

• 24 Abhishek Sharma Dubai 2025

• 27 Ishan Kishan Colombo 2026

• 29 Yuvraj Singh Ahmedabad 2012

India is dealing in boundaries at the moment. The match has already seen 11 fours and three sixes. Ishan Kishan on 72 off 37 balls with Tilak Varma playing the perfect second fiddle with 7-ball 10. India 81/1 in 8 overs.

There's no stopping Ishan Kishan as he races to 50 off just 27 balls. The left-hander scores sven boundaries and two sixes during his brilliant knock.

India look good at the moment with Ishan Kishan looking in total control. He's quickly raced to 42 off just 25 balls consisting of five boundaries and two sixes. India 52/1 in 6 overs.

India recovers well after the early setback. The partnership between Ishan Kishan and Tilak Varma for the second wicket reaches 29. India 30/1 in 4 overs.

Ishan Kishan begins a counterattack as he smashes a six and four off Shaheen Afridi despite the early setback. India are 16/1 in 2 overs.

India lose early wicket as Abhishek Sharma departs. Indian opener returns to the pavilion without adding to the score. Big wicket for Pakistan.

So as expected there was no handshake at the toss. Pakistan won the toss and elected to field first. Pakistan captain Salman Agha said they are going with the same team.

For Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav he wasn't disappointed losing the toss as India wanted to bat. Abhishek Sharma and Kuldeep Yadav make it to the team.

Pakistan XI: Sahibzada Farhan (wk), Saim Ayub, Salman Agha (capt), Babar Azam, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Tariq, Abrar Ahmed

India XI: Ishan Kishan (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (capt), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah

India and Pakistan have met 16 times in T20 World Cup history. India have won 12 of those matches, while Pakistan have earned three victories. One match ended in a tie.

Former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly feels India start as the stronger side against Pakistan. "I don't believe in head-to-head figures. I don't believe in the favourites tag, especially in T20 cricket. What I believe is that India starts as a much stronger team than Pakistan. India is a very good team. They are very well balanced in batting, bowling, seam bowling, spin bowling, fielding and game sense. They have big match experience. So they start as the stronger side. But whether India wins or not will be decided by the 40 overs in Colombo," he told JioHotstar.

India: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Rinku Singh

Pakistan: Salman Ali Agha (c), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Khawaja Nafay, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan, Usman Tariq

Turning to the contest itself, India are expected to maintain their no-handshake stance toward Pakistan. Meanwhile, weather conditions could prove decisive, with rain looming as a potential factor at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. Both the nations have four points from two wins.