Who: Pakistan vs England
What: 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Super Eight
When: Tuesday, February 24, at 7pm (13:30 GMT)
Where: Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Kandy, Sri Lanka
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 10:30 GMT in advance of our text commentary stream.
Click here to follow our live coverage.
The second Super Eight ties of the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup starts on Tuesday with an intriguing contest between former champions who both consider themselves legit title contenders: Pakistan and England.
Pakistan, despite being humiliated by India in the group phase, possess a stacked roster who, on their day, can compete with any cricket team in the world.
England, listed as the pre-tournament joint-second favorite to raise the T20 world crown, are slowly building momentum in the competition, as exhibited by their dismantling of host nation Sri Lanka in their Super Eight opener on Sunday.
Al Jazeera Sport takes a look at the matchup, which may turn out to be a pivotal outcome affecting both nations’ semifinal qualification hopes.
What’s at stake in the Pakistan-England Super Eight tie?
Pakistan desperately need a win after their first match against New Zealand was washed out on Saturday.
A defeat would put England, who skittled Sri Lanka out for just 95 runs, through to the semifinals with a game to spare.
Pakistan would then need to beat Sri Lanka in their final Super Eight match and hope other results go their way to reach the last four.
History will be against Pakistan as they have never beaten England in three previous Twenty20 (T20) World Cup clashes.
“We are confident and our morale is high,” said Pakistan batsman Sahibzada Farhan, who scored an unbeaten 100 against Namibia in Pakistan’s final group match.
“We are focused on this match to win and progress.”
Weather watch for Pakistan in Pallekele
Persistent rain in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo forced the abandonment of Pakistan’s opening Super Eight game with New Zealand without a single ball being bowled, forcing the sides to split the points at R Premadasa Stadium.
Pakistan will be hoping that the weather does not play a factor in their crucial second tie as another split result would all but end their semifinal aspirations.
Thankfully, the forecast looks good for Tuesday’s match against England at the Pallekele International Stadium in Kandy, with 33 degrees Celsius (91F) predicted with only a 25 percent possibility of rain. In short, there should be a result and a full match is a strong possibility.
England rounding into form
England kicked off their Super Eight campaign with a 51-run victory over Sri Lanka, a statistically dominant result that vaulted them to the top of the Group 2 standings on net run rate.
The two-time champions have now won their last three matches at the tournament.
Will Jacks has been the breakout star with the bat at the tournament, averaging 65 on a scintillating 195 strike rate.
Pakistan to put England in a spin
Pakistan on Monday warned England’s inconsistent batting lineup to expect a trial by spin when the teams clash.
Farhan told reporters that England struggled to 146-9 against Sri Lanka’s spinners on Sunday.
The in-form opener said that England can expect more of the same from Pakistan’s spinners when they meet on the same Pallekele ground on Tuesday night.
“What we saw in the Sri Lanka-England game was that the ball was gripping and England struggled against spin,” said Farhan on Monday.
“Sri Lanka have one or two spinners, but we have five in all, so we will give England a tough time on a pitch that looks good and will grip,” he added.
Pakistan’s spinners have taken 26 wickets in the four matches so far. Their seamers have dismissed only seven batsmen.
‘Will not be difficult’: Farhan on Archer express
Farhan, who tops the T20 World Cup run-scoring chart with 220, said he was ready for the threat of England’s express pace bowler Jofra Archer.
“Facing Archer will not be difficult because I have faced similar bowlers in Pakistan,” said Farhan.
“So if he has plans against me, I also have plans against him.”
Pakistan team news
Pakistan are likely to bring in spinner Abrar Ahmed in place of seaming all-rounder Faheem Ashraf.
Shaheen Shah Afridi’s omission from the final group stage match against Namibia and the Super Eight opener against New Zealand was a huge shock.
The bowling superstar was expensive in the group phase, with his side pivoting to a spin-dominant strategy.
With Pakistan desperately needing a win against England, the left-arm quick is expected to return to the starting XI.
England team news
England may name an unchanged side for the fifth match in succession with Liam Dawson, Will Jacks, Adil Rashid and Jacob Bethell providing their spin options.
Form Guide:
Pakistan
W-W-L-W-NR (most recent result last)
England
W-L-W-W-W (most recent result last)
What is England’s T20 World Cup record?
England has won the T20 World Cup title twice, in 2010 (defeated Australia) and in 2022 (defeated Pakistan).
They jointly hold the record for the most T20 World Cup titles alongside India (2007, 2024) and the West Indies (2012, 2016).
What is Pakistan’s T20 World Cup record?
Pakistan are three-time finalists, but have only lifted the trophy once.
The first appearance in the final came in the inaugural competition in 2007, when India claimed a five-run win.
The second edition, in 2009, saw Pakistan beat Sri Lanka in the final, but a 13-year wait ensued for the next appearance in the showpiece finale – only for England to sweep to a five-wicket victory.
What happened the last time England played Pakistan in a T20 match?
England and Pakistan have not played each other in a Twenty20 fixture since before the last T20 World Cup in 2024.
The sides competed in a four-game series in England with the home side winning 2-0, capping off their triumph in the last fixture with a seven-wicket victory at The Oval on May 30, 2024.
Head-to-head
This will be the 32nd meeting between the countries in cricket’s shortest format.
England has won more than two-thirds of matches with 21 victories, while Pakistan has nine wins. There has been one “no result”.
Possible Pakistan playing XI
Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha (c), Babar Azam, Usman Khan (wk), Khawaja Nafay, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Abrar Ahmed, Usman Tariq
Possible England playing XI
Jos Buttler (wk), Phil Salt, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook (c), Tom Banton, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Liam Dawson, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid
