Pakistan suffered a two-wicket defeat against England in their second Super Eight match of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2026, leaving them with very slim chances of advancing to the semi-finals.
England became the first team to reach the final four, leaving the Men in Green, New Zealand, and co-host Sri Lanka in close contention, with only one team set to progress among the remaining three.
The Green Shirts currently sit in third place on the points table with one point, just below New Zealand on net run rate, after their first match was washed out due to heavy rain.
Sri Lanka are at the bottom of the table after losing to England by 51 runs, leaving them needing to win their remaining matches against New Zealand and Pakistan to advance to the semi-finals.
Super 8 Group 2
| Pos | Team | P | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1.49 |
| 2 | New Zealand | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0.00 |
| 3 | Pakistan | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | -0.46 |
| 4 | Sri Lanka | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | -2.55 |
Here are the possible scenarios for Pakistan.
Scenarios 1
- Sri Lanka defeat New Zealand today or the match is washed out.
- Semi-final qualifier England defeat New Zealand on Friday.
- Pakistan defeat Sri Lanka on Saturday.
In this situation, New Zealand are restricted by England’s victory and Sri Lanka taking points off them, allowing Pakistan to remain firmly in contention for a semi-final place.
Scenarios 2
- New Zealand beat the host today
- England beat New Zealand on Friday
- Pakistan beat Sri Lanka on Saturday
In this case Pakistan would not only need victory over Sri Lanka but must secure it by a significant margin to ensure they finish ahead of New Zealand on Net Run Rate.
Scenarios 3
- Sri Lanka beat New Zealand today
- New Zealand beat England on Friday
- Pakistan beat Sri Lanka on Saturday.
In this case Pakistan would not only need victory over Sri Lanka but must secure it by a significant margin to ensure they finish ahead of New Zealand on Net Run Rate.
Scenarios 4
- New Zealand vs Sri Lanka today washed out.
- England defeated New Zealand on Friday.
- Pakistan vs Sri Lanka washed out on Saturday.
This is an extremely rare scenario, as all three teams will finish with two points each, making their Net Run Rate the decisive factor to determine which team advances to the semis.
