Pakistan National Cricket Team vs England Cricket Team Match: Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat against England in the 45th match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 Super 8 Group 2 clash at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on Tuesday, February 24, 2026. Pakistan captain Salman Agha said the surface looked good and his side wanted to post an above-par total before defending it. “We’re going to bat first. It looks like a good pitch and we want to put up an above-par score and then try to defend it,” Agha said. “It’s our first game of the tournament here in Pallekele, but we’ve been playing most of our cricket in Colombo. Wherever you go, adjusting to conditions is key.”
Pakistan made one change from their previous outing, bringing back Shaheen Afridi in place of Faheem Ashraf after their rain-affected match against New Zealand. Agha said the team had the flexibility to rely on either its spin strength or pace attack depending on match situations.
England captain Harry Brook said he would have also chosen to bat on the fresh surface but was confident in his team’s ability to chase. England retained the same playing XI that secured a 51-run win over Sri Lanka in their previous match.
“It’s a fresh pitch compared to what we played on a couple of days ago, so hopefully it’s a bit better and gives us a good chance to chase later on,” Brook said. “We’re going in with the same team and there’s a lot of confidence in the group.”
England entered the match on top of Group 2 with two points and could secure a semifinal spot with another victory. Pakistan, meanwhile, have one point following their rain-affected match against New Zealand. A defeat in this contest would significantly dent their chances of progressing to the knockout stage.
ENG vs PAK Playing XIs
England (Playing XI): Philip Salt, Jos Buttler(w), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Harry Brook(c), Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Liam Dawson, Jamie Overton, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid
Pakistan (Playing XI): Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Agha(c), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Usman Khan(w), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Salman Mirza, Usman Tariq