W
0
0
1
0
0
= 1
Match Details
NED vs PAK, 1st T20, T20 WC 2026 live
PAK
148-7(19.3)
Pakistan won by 3 wickets 🏆
NED
(19.5)147-10
+
P'ship : 34(20)
Commentary
All
Highlights
Overs
W
6s
4s
Inn 1
Inn 2
Milestone
This is exactly what the doctor ordered to keep everyone on their toes as the T20 World Cup 2026 begins with a bang! Netherlands did what they always do. They nearly nailed the art of "Giant Killing". Thanks to Faheem Ashraf's clutch finish, which was also aided by Max O'Dowd's dropped catch under pressure, Pakistan began the tournament with a thrilling three-wicket win.
Two more games to follow today, on the opening day of the tournament. Shift tabs to watch West Indies vs Scotland live now.
For now, this is me, AkshayaKrishna Polya, signing off on behalf of my co-commentators, Dev Rajawat, and Darpan Tikiya, scorer Zeeshan Naiyer and statistician Aman. We will meet again. Until then, it is cheers!
Two more games to follow today, on the opening day of the tournament. Shift tabs to watch West Indies vs Scotland live now.
For now, this is me, AkshayaKrishna Polya, signing off on behalf of my co-commentators, Dev Rajawat, and Darpan Tikiya, scorer Zeeshan Naiyer and statistician Aman. We will meet again. Until then, it is cheers!
Most Runs Scored by a Pakistan Batter in an Over in T20I World Cups:
24 - Asif Ali vs Afghanistan, Dubai (DICS), 2021
24 - Mohammad Rizwan vs Namibia, Abu Dhabi, 2021
24 - Faheem Ashraf vs Netherlands, Colombo (SSC), 2026 [TODAY]
24 - Asif Ali vs Afghanistan, Dubai (DICS), 2021
24 - Mohammad Rizwan vs Namibia, Abu Dhabi, 2021
24 - Faheem Ashraf vs Netherlands, Colombo (SSC), 2026 [TODAY]
Highest Target Successfully Chased in the last two overs in a T20I WC Game:
34 by Australia vs Pakistan, Gros Islet, 2010
31 by West Indies vs Australia, Mirpur, 2014
31 by India vs Pakistan, Melbourne, 2022
30 by Sri Lanka vs India, Gros Islet, 2010
29 by Pakistan vs Netherlands, Colombo (SSC), 2026 [TODAY]*
27 by West Indies vs England, Kolkata, 2016
34 by Australia vs Pakistan, Gros Islet, 2010
31 by West Indies vs Australia, Mirpur, 2014
31 by India vs Pakistan, Melbourne, 2022
30 by Sri Lanka vs India, Gros Islet, 2010
29 by Pakistan vs Netherlands, Colombo (SSC), 2026 [TODAY]*
27 by West Indies vs England, Kolkata, 2016
Highest Score at No.8 or lower in a Successful Run Chase in T20 WC:
34* (10) - Carlos Brathwaite (West Indies) vs England, Kolkata, 2016
32 (17) - Umar Gul (Pakistan) vs South Africa, Colombo (RPS), 2012
29* (11) - Faheem Ashraf (Pakistan) vs Netherlands, Colombo (SSC), 2026 [TODAY]
34* (10) - Carlos Brathwaite (West Indies) vs England, Kolkata, 2016
32 (17) - Umar Gul (Pakistan) vs South Africa, Colombo (RPS), 2012
29* (11) - Faheem Ashraf (Pakistan) vs Netherlands, Colombo (SSC), 2026 [TODAY]
Salman Ali Agha (Pakistan Captain): (On Pakistan making things difficult) Pakistan do have this ability to make a straightforward run chase feel like a James Bond movie - we always seem to do it the hard way. But having said that, I think our bowling was very good. We stuck to our plans well and restricted them to 148, which I would happily take any day.
(On the bowling performance against the Netherlands) They started really well, and we knew they would come hard at us. But I think we pulled things back nicely. On this pitch, 147-148 is a very good total, and our spinners played a big role. They’ve been bowling really well for the last six months, and once again they delivered today. Overall, it was a complete bowling performance.
(On the batting start and where the chase slipped) The first 10 overs with the bat were very good - we started really well. But then those two quick wickets changed things. In this format, even two or three bad overs can take you far away from the game. That’s where the pressure came in.
(On handling pressure in the middle overs) I think we need to absorb pressure better in these situations. When pressure comes, we have to stay calm and manage it properly. If we can do that, I believe we’ll be absolutely fine as a batting unit.
(On Faheem’s innings) Full credit to Faheem. It was his first game, and he played a really important innings. The way he handled himself was outstanding.
(On the pitch and conditions going forward) It’s a good batting wicket. It’s not easy right at the start, but once you get in, it becomes a very good surface to bat on. That’s something we’ve spoken about - when someone gets in, we need to make sure that batter stays till the end and finishes the game. That’s what we aim to do today, and we’ll look to do the same in the next game.
Well played to Faheem Ashraf - that was a masterclass under pressure. Thank you very much.”
(On the bowling performance against the Netherlands) They started really well, and we knew they would come hard at us. But I think we pulled things back nicely. On this pitch, 147-148 is a very good total, and our spinners played a big role. They’ve been bowling really well for the last six months, and once again they delivered today. Overall, it was a complete bowling performance.
(On the batting start and where the chase slipped) The first 10 overs with the bat were very good - we started really well. But then those two quick wickets changed things. In this format, even two or three bad overs can take you far away from the game. That’s where the pressure came in.
(On handling pressure in the middle overs) I think we need to absorb pressure better in these situations. When pressure comes, we have to stay calm and manage it properly. If we can do that, I believe we’ll be absolutely fine as a batting unit.
(On Faheem’s innings) Full credit to Faheem. It was his first game, and he played a really important innings. The way he handled himself was outstanding.
(On the pitch and conditions going forward) It’s a good batting wicket. It’s not easy right at the start, but once you get in, it becomes a very good surface to bat on. That’s something we’ve spoken about - when someone gets in, we need to make sure that batter stays till the end and finishes the game. That’s what we aim to do today, and we’ll look to do the same in the next game.
Well played to Faheem Ashraf - that was a masterclass under pressure. Thank you very much.”
Scott Edwards (Netherlands captain): "I think we were not at our best in all three departments. Credit to the boys for fighting it to give ourselves a chance. But those small moments can hurt you.
(On the batting) We just kept losing wickets instead of building partnerships. We felt that 160 would give us a good chance. So we were a little bit under par. But a couple of good spells from Reolof (van der Merwe) and Pauly (van Meekeren) brought us into the wicket.
It was a pretty good wicket. Pakistan were batting well. But then Pauly bowled that over which was a maiden or something and then another one which did not go for many. The boys than jumped on that momentum.
(On the batting) We just kept losing wickets instead of building partnerships. We felt that 160 would give us a good chance. So we were a little bit under par. But a couple of good spells from Reolof (van der Merwe) and Pauly (van Meekeren) brought us into the wicket.
It was a pretty good wicket. Pakistan were batting well. But then Pauly bowled that over which was a maiden or something and then another one which did not go for many. The boys than jumped on that momentum.
Faheem Ashraf (Player of the Match): (On his innings and the pressure) To be honest, as we’ve spoken about before, we’ve been playing this kind of cricket consistently for the last year or so. Whenever a job is given to us, the effort is always to do it in the best possible way. As for the heartbeat, Ramiz bhai, I’ve been in these kinds of situations many times in my career, so it wasn’t something completely new for me. The mindset was simple - whatever the situation is, go out there and do what you know best.
(On the conversation with his batting partner) Our only discussion was that we must not lose our wicket. We knew we could score runs in different ways - five runs in an over, one boundary here, another boundary there, and then five more. Alhamdulillah, things went exactly the way we planned.
(On the crucial over of 23-24 runs and the dropped catch) That over was a very critical phase of the innings. And yes, when the ball goes up in the air, it’s not just your tongue - every part of your body starts praying - Ya Allah, let it drop, let it drop.
(On the team situation and finishing the game) As a team, situations like this do come up. Our effort is always to finish games early, especially when we’re cruising. But sometimes the team collapses, and then you have to work hard till the end. In such moments, controlling your nerves is very important. If you look at our team, even when things go wrong, we manage to keep our nerves under control, and because of that, we often get a good result in the end.
Once again, thank you very much.”
(On the conversation with his batting partner) Our only discussion was that we must not lose our wicket. We knew we could score runs in different ways - five runs in an over, one boundary here, another boundary there, and then five more. Alhamdulillah, things went exactly the way we planned.
(On the crucial over of 23-24 runs and the dropped catch) That over was a very critical phase of the innings. And yes, when the ball goes up in the air, it’s not just your tongue - every part of your body starts praying - Ya Allah, let it drop, let it drop.
(On the team situation and finishing the game) As a team, situations like this do come up. Our effort is always to finish games early, especially when we’re cruising. But sometimes the team collapses, and then you have to work hard till the end. In such moments, controlling your nerves is very important. If you look at our team, even when things go wrong, we manage to keep our nerves under control, and because of that, we often get a good result in the end.
Once again, thank you very much.”
Player of the Match — Faheem Ashraf
2:26 PM IST, LOCAL TIME: PHEW! What a start to the T20 World Cup 2026! An edge-of-the-seat thriller to kick off the competition, with Pakistan holding their nerve to claim a three-wicket win!
Two names - Faheem Ashraf and Max O'Dowd - will be in the headlines in their respective countries for the next few days! Pakistan avoid a massive scare! Netherlands gave the 2009 champions a run for their money and were all set for an upset in the first game of the season, but O'Dowd put down Faheem's catch on the second ball of the penultimate over, when the Men in Green still required 23 runs to win, and that was the final twist in this mouth-watering tale!
Earlier in the game, Pakistan won the toss and decided to bowl first. Shaheen Shah Afridi had a wayward start with the new ball, and Michael Levitt made decent use of it. However, the Dutch lose both their openers in quick succession, but useful knocks from Bas de Leede, Colin Ackermann and Scott Edwards gave a good launching platform for Netherlands. Edwards top-scored with 37 off 29 balls. A late collapse from Pakistan bundled out Netherlands for just 147 in 19.5 overs as the Orange Army lost their last 6 wickets for just 23 runs.
Salman Mirza picked up three wickets, while Mohammad Nawaz, Abrar Ahmed and Saim Ayub scalped two each. Shaheen had a late wicket to his name, while Shadab was wicketless but economical.
Saim Ayub went hammer and tongs up front, scoring a 13-ball 24, but Aryan Dutt had an immediate revenge, before Sahibzada Farhan (47 off 31) looked good with a classy innings. Farhan started slowly, but once Salman Ali Agha joined him, he looked in fine touch. However, after a few boundaries, the Pakistan skipper fell into the trap set by Aryan Dutt.
Despite scoring 61 runs in the powerplay, Farhan went all guns blazing and had the required run rate under control, Pakistan somehow found it hard to get away after the halfway mark. Netherlands bounced back in the second half of the innings to pick up wickets at regular intervals and apply a choke on the Men in Green. Even the stalwart Babar Azam struggled to milk the runs and eventually holed out.
However, Faheem's timely blows, three sixes and a four in the 19th over delivered by Logan van Beek, showed exactly where the match was heading with Pakistan needing 29 runs to win off the last 2 overs. The equation was down to 5 off the last 6 balls. Shaheen and Faheem took just 3 balls of the last over to crawl home. The latter was superb under pressure, hitting an unbeaten 29 off 11 balls.
Aryan Dutt took two wickets in the powerplay. Paul van Meekeren bowled a double-wicket maiden and finished with 2/20, and it was he who turned things around in the 12th over. Not to forget the 41-year-old Roelof van Merwe's efforts on the field and with the ball for his 1/13 in 3 overs. Van Beek's 24 runs in the penultimate over ended the hopes of the Netherlands.
Stay tuned for the post-match presentations!
Two names - Faheem Ashraf and Max O'Dowd - will be in the headlines in their respective countries for the next few days! Pakistan avoid a massive scare! Netherlands gave the 2009 champions a run for their money and were all set for an upset in the first game of the season, but O'Dowd put down Faheem's catch on the second ball of the penultimate over, when the Men in Green still required 23 runs to win, and that was the final twist in this mouth-watering tale!
Earlier in the game, Pakistan won the toss and decided to bowl first. Shaheen Shah Afridi had a wayward start with the new ball, and Michael Levitt made decent use of it. However, the Dutch lose both their openers in quick succession, but useful knocks from Bas de Leede, Colin Ackermann and Scott Edwards gave a good launching platform for Netherlands. Edwards top-scored with 37 off 29 balls. A late collapse from Pakistan bundled out Netherlands for just 147 in 19.5 overs as the Orange Army lost their last 6 wickets for just 23 runs.
Salman Mirza picked up three wickets, while Mohammad Nawaz, Abrar Ahmed and Saim Ayub scalped two each. Shaheen had a late wicket to his name, while Shadab was wicketless but economical.
Saim Ayub went hammer and tongs up front, scoring a 13-ball 24, but Aryan Dutt had an immediate revenge, before Sahibzada Farhan (47 off 31) looked good with a classy innings. Farhan started slowly, but once Salman Ali Agha joined him, he looked in fine touch. However, after a few boundaries, the Pakistan skipper fell into the trap set by Aryan Dutt.
Despite scoring 61 runs in the powerplay, Farhan went all guns blazing and had the required run rate under control, Pakistan somehow found it hard to get away after the halfway mark. Netherlands bounced back in the second half of the innings to pick up wickets at regular intervals and apply a choke on the Men in Green. Even the stalwart Babar Azam struggled to milk the runs and eventually holed out.
However, Faheem's timely blows, three sixes and a four in the 19th over delivered by Logan van Beek, showed exactly where the match was heading with Pakistan needing 29 runs to win off the last 2 overs. The equation was down to 5 off the last 6 balls. Shaheen and Faheem took just 3 balls of the last over to crawl home. The latter was superb under pressure, hitting an unbeaten 29 off 11 balls.
Aryan Dutt took two wickets in the powerplay. Paul van Meekeren bowled a double-wicket maiden and finished with 2/20, and it was he who turned things around in the 12th over. Not to forget the 41-year-old Roelof van Merwe's efforts on the field and with the ball for his 1/13 in 3 overs. Van Beek's 24 runs in the penultimate over ended the hopes of the Netherlands.
Stay tuned for the post-match presentations!
Commentary