T20 World Cup 2026: Indian playing XI reshuffle confirmed! Pakistan to field five spinners
Fans are eagerly awaiting the Indian team's batting combination against Pakistan. The good news for the Indian team is that Abhishek Sharma is fully fit.
T20 World Cup 2026: India and Pakistan will play a high-voltage group stage match of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 on Sunday (February 15). The match will be played at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. The toss is scheduled for 6:30 pm IST, with the first ball scheduled for 7 pm.
The Indian team's playing XI will see some changes for this match. Opener Abhishek Sharma has fully recovered and even participated in net practice on February 14. Abhishek was not fully fit due to a stomach infection, which is why he did not play in the match against Namibia. Due to Abhishek's return, Sanju Samson is likely to be left out of the playing XI.
Prep mode 🔛
— BCCI (@BCCI) February 14, 2026
📸 𝙎𝙣𝙖𝙥𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙩𝙨 from #TeamIndia's training session in Colombo! 💪#MenInBlue | #T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/ia1ehyvMFS
The pitch at the R. Premadasa Stadium is considered favorable for spinners, so the Indian team may also field chinaman Kuldeep Yadav in this match. This means that the Indian playing XI could feature three spinners. If Kuldeep plays, left-arm fast bowler Arshdeep Singh may have to sit out. Hardik Pandya could bowl with the new ball alongside Jasprit Bumrah. India will also have the option of Shivam Dubey in the pace department.
Pakistani team's strategy!
On the other hand, the Pakistani team may field five spinners in this match: Shadab Khan, Usman Tariq, Abrar Ahmed, Sam Ayub, and Mohammad Nawaz. Furthermore, Sam Ayub has been bowling well recently, meaning Pakistan will have a fifth spin option. Mystery spinner Usman Tariq is considered their trump card. The Pakistani team adopted the same strategy against the United States, fielding five spinners.
India's probable playing XI for the match: Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Tilak Verma, Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dubey, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh/Kuldeep Yadav.
Pakistan's probable playing XI for the match: Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Ali Agha (captain), Babar Azam, Usman Khan (wicketkeeper), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Usman Tariq, and Abrar Ahmed.