🏏ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026: S8 - M45: England vs Pakistan🏏

🏏ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026: S8 - M45: England vs Pakistan at Pallekele on 24/02/2026 at 7PM IST🏏

England (ENG) and Pakistan (PAK) will lock horns in Match 45 of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 Super Eights at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Pallekele on Tuesday, February 24.

England head into the contest high on confidence after a 51-run win over Sri Lanka. Batting first, England posted 146/9, with Phil Salt anchoring the innings with a 62. Though the total looked slightly under par, their bowlers turned the game in the powerplay. Will Jacks delivered a match-winning spell of 3/22, while Jofra Archer dismantled Sri Lanka’s top order. Reduced to 34/5 inside six overs, Sri Lanka never recovered and were bowled out for just 95 in 16.4 overs. The clinical performance not only gave England two vital points but also boosted their net run rate significantly.

Pakistan, on the other hand, had a frustrating start to their Super Eights campaign. Their clash against New Zealand in Colombo was abandoned without a ball being bowled due to persistent rain. Both teams shared a point, leaving Pakistan still searching for momentum in the second phase.

unit comfortable in disrupting and clearing the ropes.

Team news:

England: Harry Brook's side has remained unchanged for a while and are likely to stick with the same combination. Meanwhile, it is still unclear whether Jacob Bethell will be able to bowl after injuring his finger earlier in the competition.

Probable XI: Phil Salt, Jos Buttler (wk), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Harry Brook (c), Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Liam Dawson, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid

Pakistan: Even though Shaheen Afridi spent a fair amount of time bowling in the practice session on the eve of the game, it appears unlikely that the left-armer will return to the XI, with Salman Mirza set to retain his place. Pakistan brought back Fakhar Zaman into the mix against New Zealand in place of Khawaja Nafay. With the game getting washed out, they would want to stick to their call and give the experienced Zaman a go.

Meanwhile, it will be interesting to see where Babar Azam bats for Pakistan. Against Namibia, he did not come out to bat, with Khawaja Nafay and Shadab Khan sent ahead of him. "We got to the 12th over mark and at that point, Babar Azam is not the best person to come in," said head coach Mike Hesson. He added: "I think he's well aware his strike rate in the Powerplay in World Cups is less than 100 in T20s. So clearly, that's not a role that we think we need here."

In that scenario, Babar's role could be limited to that of a stabiliser at No. 4 in case of early wickets.

Probable XI: Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Agha (c), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Usman Khan (wk), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Salman Mirza, Usman Tariq

Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Pallekele Pitch Report

The Pallekele International Cricket Stadium is generally considered a batting-friendly venue, where scores in excess of 150 are quite common in T20 cricket. The surface offers good pace and carry, allowing batters to play their shots freely once they settle in. Bowlers will need to maintain disciplined lines and lengths, as any inconsistency is likely to be punished. While there may be some assistance for the pacers early on, the conditions overall tend to favour the batters.

Pallekele weather forecast

Nonetheless, the good news for Pakistan is that there’s no rain threat today for the match against England at Pallekele. It’s quite sunny currently in Pallekele and even though there’s a 25% chance of rain in the day, the probability of precipitation comes down to 0% by match time.

The England vs Pakistan match will start at 7 PM local time, and the toss will take place at 6.30 PM. According to AccuWeather, the chances of rain around that time is 0%. The temperatures would be around 26-21 degrees Celsius, but there can be cloud cover.

ENG vs PAK Head to Head Record in T20s

Matches Played 31

ENG Won 20

PAK Won 09

Tied / No Results 02

First-ever Fixture August 28, 2006

Last Fixture May 30, 2024

ENG vs PAK Probable Best Performers

Probable Best Batter: Sahibzada Farhan

Pakistan opener Sahibzada Farhan could be the best batter in the upcoming game against the England team, as he has managed to hit 220 runs in four games at an average of 73.33 and a strike rate of 164.17. With one ton and one half-century to his name, Farhas has been in fine touch and will look to continue the same rhythm.

Probable Best Bowler: Adil Rashid

England's Adil Rashid could be the best bowler in his team's forthcoming game. The veteran spinner has had a brilliant tournament so far, claiming eight wickets in five innings at an economy of 8.03, and is the highest wicket-taker of his team in this edition.

Today's Match Prediction: Team batting first to win the match

Eng First To Bat

Powerplay: 30-35

150-155

Pakistan First To Bat

Powerplay: 30-35

145-150

Win Probability

ENG 50%

PAK 50%

Disclaimer

The prediction is based on the understanding, analysis, and instinct of the author. While making your prediction, consider the points mentioned, and make your own decision.

When: Tuesday, February 24 at 7:00 PM Local Time

Where: Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Pallekele

What to expect: Having been under covers for long periods, the surface showed some stickiness in the previous Super Eights game here, making run-scoring far from straightforward. However, with no rain around now, the pitch has had time to settle, which could aid better batting compared to the England-Sri Lanka game. That said, spin is still expected to play a major role. On the weather front, there is no rain forecast for Tuesday.

In the spotlight: Jos Buttler and Salman Mirza

Already under the pump, each approaching innings carries an increasing level of jeopardy for Jos Buttler, and England, who need him to find some form as the stakes rise. They've been able to cover for him so far, but 60 runs in five innings with a strike rate of 113.20 just doesn't cut it for a player of his unrivalled pedigree. Buttler has clearly earned the right to be given time to find his form - Brook, his captain, expressed every confidence after another failure against Sri Lanka that he will come good as one of the greatest servants of the white-ball game. He was seen training with England's reserve players on Monday while the rest of Sunday's XI took the day off. What better time for Buttler to cash in than with qualification for the knockout phase on the line?

Salman Mirza could find himself called upon as Pakistan's sole frontline seamer if they plump for the same side named to face New Zealand, with Shaheen benched and something of a more seam-friendly wicket expected. Pakistan kept a keen eye on England's performance against Sri Lanka's spinners at Pallekele - Dunith Wellalage and Maheesh Theekshana shared five wickets between them, although leggie Dushan Hemantha was expensive - and expect a lot of their spin attack. But, with four wickets at 8.75 and an economy rate of 6.00, including 3 for 24 against the Netherlands in Colombo, he could rise to the test, the weather having denied him the opportunity against New Zealand.

Stats and trivia

• England have won all three of their matches against Pakistan in men's T20 World Cups.
• England have also won each of their last five meetings against Pakistan in men's T20Is.
• Will Jacks has been player-of-the-match in three of England's four wins at this World Cup. Shane Watson (four in 2012) and Sikandar Raza (three in 2022) are only other players with three such awards in an edition of the men's T20 World Cup.