Tensions simmer without a single handshake as India and Pakistan lock horns in T20 World Cup 2026’s marquee fixture at Colombo’s R. Premadasa Stadium. Salman Agha, Pakistan’s skipper, won the toss and elected to bowl, thrusting India into batting early. Suryakumar Yadav, leading India, firmly adhered to the no-handshake protocol echoing from Asia Cup 2025.
Post-toss, SKY elaborated, ‘Batting first was our plan, but we’ve defended successfully lately—no need to fix it. The game’s lessons are endless; returns of Abhishek Sharma and Kuldeep add firepower.’ Since Operation Sindoor, India has orchestrated ‘Operation White Ball,’ thrashing Pakistan in three Asia Cup encounters, including the final.
No post-match pleasantries either—just clinical wins. India’s T20 World Cup record vs Pakistan? A commanding 7 victories in 8 outings. History favors the Men in Blue.
India’s lineup: Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah.
Pakistan’s squad: Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Agha (c), Babar Azam, Mohammad Nawaz, Usman Khan (wk), Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Abrar Ahmed, Usman Tariq.
This symbolic snub underscores the rivalry’s intensity. As balls fly and wickets tumble, ‘Operation White Ball’ tests if India can whitewash sentiments off the field too.