Shaheen Shah Afridi made an immediate impact in Pakistan’s T20 World Cup 2026 match by dismissing England’s Jos Buttler with the first ball of the innings at Pallekele.
The left-arm pacer’s early strike marks his eighth wicket with a first-ball delivery in T20 World Cups, equalling former Sri Lankan all-rounder Angelo Mathews’ record for the most such dismissals.
Buttler, struggling for form despite diligent training, was bowled after under-edging a delivery, leaving England’s opening partnership in disarray early in the innings.
Shaheen’s delivery angled across the right-handed Buttler on a length outside off stump, and the batter failed to make proper contact, allowing the ball to pass through to the wicketkeeper.
This dismissal continued England’s poor opening sequence in the tournament, following scores of five, 38, two, 21, 16, and zero in previous matches against other opponents.
England will need 165 runs to reach the semi-finals after Pakistan posted 164 in their Super Eight match at Pallekele, leaving the chase achievable but requiring disciplined batting and calculated strokeplay.
Pakistan chose to bat first after winning the toss, but their total appeared slightly under-par as the fresh pitch allowed some early freedom. Momentum, however, was lost in the middle overs to England’s spinners.
Babar Azam scored 25 off 24 balls before Jamie Overton dismissed him, while Fakhar Zaman struggled for rhythm and fell to Adil Rashid, exposing Pakistan’s lower middle order to pressure.
Shadab Khan and Usman Khan showed brief flashes of aggression, but wickets fell regularly as Dawson maintained control. Shaheen Afridi avoided a hat-trick ball, leaving Pakistan’s innings without significant late momentum.
England struck early with Jofra Archer dismissing Saim Ayub, Liam Dawson removing Salman Agha, and Jamie Overton trapping Sahibzada Farhan lbw, while occasional misfields still restricted Pakistan to 164.
