Pakistan supporters will have their eyes glued to the England vs New Zealand game at the RPS Colombo on Friday. The match has major significance in the race for the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final. Pakistan who will be in action against Sri Lanka on Saturday, could well be knocked out before they take the field.
That leaves Pakistan hanging on by a thread. A win alone in their final game won't guarantee qualification. They need a massive favour from Harry Brook and England to jump back into the queue.
Pakistan, placed third in the table, are locked in a battle with New Zealand for the second and final berth, but the Kiwis are in a far stronger position than Agha’s side.
With three points New Zealand are in pole position compared to Pakistan’s solitary point from two matches. But all hope is not lost for Pakistan, who can still qualify if England thrash New Zealand by a huge margin on Friday and Agha’s men, in turn, beat Sri Lanka just as comprehensively.
A defeat for New Zealand and a win for Pakistan also does not guarantee a semi-final for Pakistan. Salman Agha's side needs Kiwis to lose by a huge margin and then claim a big win over Sri Lanka. They will have to topple New Zealand's NRR. Currently, the difference is staggering, with the Kiwis boasting of a vastly superior net run rate of 3.050. Pakistan meanwhile have a negative NRR of -0.461.
