Head coach Mike Hesson admitted Pakistan’s dressing room was left devastated after a crushing 61-run defeat to India in their T20 World Cup 2026 Group A clash in Colombo on Sunday.
The high-voltage encounter, cleared only days earlier after the Pakistan government gave approval for the team to travel, saw defending champions India stamp their authority at the R. Premadasa Stadium. Sent in to bat on a sluggish surface, India posted a competitive 175 for 7 before bundling Pakistan out for 114 in 18 overs.
“There’s a pretty disappointed dressing room in there at the moment because the players understand how much this fixture means to Pakistan,” Hesson said after suffering his fourth straight loss to India, following three defeats at last year’s Asia Cup.
“We had won five games on the bounce before today, so we came in confident. But we were outplayed.”
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India’s recovery was spearheaded by a sparkling 77 from Ishan Kishan, who steadied the innings after explosive opener Abhishek Sharma fell in the first over. Suryakumar Yadav (32) and Shivam Dube (27) provided late impetus to push the total to a challenging mark.
Pakistan’s chase unravelled quickly as Jasprit Bumrah struck twice in the second over, removing Saim Ayub and captain Salman Agha to leave them reeling at 13 for 3. Usman Khan’s 44 was the lone bright spot in an otherwise disappointing batting display. The total of 114 marked Pakistan’s third-lowest score against India in T20 cricket.
Hesson defended his decision to bowl first, despite the venue’s recent trend favouring teams batting first.
“The ball was spinning quite a lot early o,n and I felt we started well. But the way Kishan played, he took the game away from us,” he said.
India’s third consecutive win sealed their place in the Super Eights, while Pakistan must now defeat Namibia on Wednesday to stay in contention.
The loss further worsened Pakistan’s World Cup record against India to 1-8. They are yet to defeat India in an ODI World Cup, having lost all eight encounters.
“We need to pick ourselves up quickly,” Hesson added. “We’ve played good cricket leading into this tournament, and we’re confident we can still make an impact.”
