![Nasser Hussain backs Pakistan [Source: screengrab, AFP]](https://onecricketnews.akamaized.net/parth-editor/oc-dashboard/news-images-prod/1781603119005_Nasser_Hussain_and_Jay_Shah.jpg?type=hq)
Nasser Hussain backs Pakistan [Source: screengrab, AFP]
India Women decimated Pakistan by 64 runs in their Group 1 match of the 2026 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup last weekend in Birmingham. The outcome further extended India’s dominance over the ‘Women in Green’ in T20I cricket over the past few years, recording their fourth win in a row and their 14th win in just 17 encounters meeting the two sides.
The growing gap between India and Pakistan Women’s teams has now been highlighted by former England captain and India-born Nasser Hussain, who was one of the commentators of the recently-concluded Birmingham shootout.
Nasser Hussain implies India has “unfair” advantage over Pakistan
While speaking on a Sky Sports podcast, former England captain Nasser Hussain claimed that he knew the India Women team would beat Pakistan in their recent T20 World Cup 2026 clash, a prediction he claimed to have made even before the first ball was bowled in Birmingham.
The prominent commentator also implied that Team India has an “unfair, unlevel” playing advantage over Pakistan owing to the presence of Indian players in global franchise competitions.
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Hussain said “I knew the result before I turned up to the game. It is an unfair, unlevel playing field. You look at the big side and it’s a bit of self-perpetuating because they are playing more franchise cricket, they get better. And because they get better, their nation gets better and because that happens, they play more franchise cricket.”
Nasser Hussain further urged franchises from The Hundred and other leagues to pick players from Bangladesh and Pakistan in a bid to make the global competition more competitive. The ex-cricketer also named dropped Pakistan Women’s captain Fatima Sana during his assessment.
He added “So it is not fair for Bangladesh, Pakistan who don’t have players go off and play The Hundred. Marufa Akter from Bangladesh, Fatima Sana, these are excellent cricketers, should world cricket and franchise cricket be signing these cricketers so that the competition is genuinely worldwide.”
Men’s cricket tells a different story
Contrary to Nasser Hussain’s claims, his women’s argument certainly does not hold up in men’s situation for India and Pakistan players. For starters, a legion of Pakistan men’s cricketers like Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi and Shadab Khan among others regularly participate in PSL as well as in a slew of overseas T20 leagues.
On the other hand, active Indian players are only restricted to participating in the Indian Premier League (IPL) by the BCCI.
Despite that exposure gap working in Pakistan’s favour, the Indian men’s team continue to dominate their arch-rivals across both white-ball formats in recent years. Moreover, Team India has recorded nine wins in a row over Pakistan in various multi-nation tournaments like Asia Cups, Champions Trophy, ODI World Cups and T20 World Cup matches.
Pakistan’s last win over India in any form of international cricket occurred way back in September 2022 during the 2022 Asia Cup in Dubai.
Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh and Mandhana maul Pakistan in Birmingham
India Women blanked Pakistan by 64 runs to get off to a winning start at the 2026 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup on Sunday, June 14. Batting first, a regal half-century from Smriti Mandhana (68 off 44) and a rowdy 17-ball 34 from Richa Ghosh catapulted the ‘Women in Blue’ to 170-6 in 20 overs.
In response, a record five-wicket haul from Deepti Sharma skittled Pakistan for just 106 in 17 overs. India Women will now face Netherlands in Leeds on June 17.
Also Read- Deepti Sharma Climbs ICC Rankings After Record-Breaking Performance Vs Pakistan
