Salman Agha plays down Colombo comfort ahead of India clash
Playing all their World Cup matches in Colombo barely qualifies as an advantage, and the winner on Sunday will be decided purely by who plays better cricket. That was Pakistan captain Salman Agha's firm view ahead of the high profile clash against India.
In this 2026 edition of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka, Pakistan are not travelling to India under the arrangement agreed after last year's ICC Champions Trophy. At that time, India had chosen not to travel to Pakistan citing security concerns, which meant teams including hosts Pakistan had to travel to the UAE to face India, who eventually won the title.
This time, Pakistan are in a similar situation, with most other teams playing across two countries at some point while they remain stationed in one. But Agha believes the benefit is limited to getting used to the weather.
"We are based here and play all matches in Colombo, but I don't know how it's an advantage," Agha said in front of a packed press conference room at the R. Premadasa Stadium. "We are used to the climate, that's all the advantage there is.
"You have to play good cricket for all 40 overs, else you can't win. You have to execute your plans. Just because you are based here, it doesn't mean you are going to win matches. We have to execute well, that's what we will try and do."
Pakistan's situation is slightly more layered than simply playing in one city. Their training sessions have been spread across three venues: R. Premadasa Stadium, the Singhalese Sports Club (SSC), and the Colombo Cricket Club (CCC) Ground, all located in different parts of Colombo.
The two T20 World Cup matches they have played in the city so far were both at the SSC. That is different from India, who played all their matches at one venue during the Champions Trophy, and had access to the ICC Academy for practice.
For this specific match, however, Pakistan do appear to have a touch more familiarity with the conditions. They had two practice sessions at the match venue in the lead up to the India fixture. India, by contrast, had only one session there, having spent a day between matches on travel and immigration formalities. That extra time at the ground has at least allowed Pakistan to assess the surface and plan more clearly for the contest.
"Being in Sri Lanka, we know the climate and how the pitch will behave," Agha said. "We are well prepared with that. Hopefully it helps us. I don't mind if it doesn't, but at the end of the day, we have to play good cricket for 40 overs to win a game of cricket."
R. Premadasa Stadium has hosted three matches in this World Cup so far, with an almost equal split in wickets between spin, 20, and pace, 21. More overs of spin have been bowled and scoring against it has not been easy, particularly with the long boundaries around the ground. Pakistan have fielded as many as five spin options in their XI during this tournament, all capable of completing their full quota. While Agha hopes that the surface plays to their advantage, he expects the fast bowlers to play a part.
"It's possible that spinners dominate here, but I feel fast bowlers will have a role to play," Agha said. "Fast bowling is such a skill that on any surface you can't write it off. So I think they will surely have a role to play. We have good spinners but also quality pacers, if needed to be called upon."
Agha also acknowledged the scale of the occasion, especially given the uncertainty around the build up, and spoke about the added weight of leading Pakistan in a match of this magnitude.
"I haven't lost sleep, but I have a few extra grays in my beard," Agha said with a smile. "Yeah, it's an added responsibility when you are captain of your side and [are] representing 250-260 million people.
"You can't run away from the responsibility. When you are representing your country and you are the captain of your side, we need to find a way to deal with that."
India have a 7-1 lead over Pakistan in T20 World Cups, and have won their last eight completed matches against them across formats. Will this time be any different?
"We don't have a good record in the World Cups," Agha acknowledged, "but whenever you play a new match, you have to play good cricket to win. You can't do anything with history. You can learn from it. We have also learned from it and we will try to put in a good performance tomorrow."
