India vs Pakistan, ICC T20 World Cup 2026: The India vs Pakistan match in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2026 created a new viewership record. The match ended up being a one-sided affair as India defeated Pakistan by 61 runs at the R.Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Sunday, February 15, extending their dominance over the arch-rivals.
JioStar, the official digital and broadcast partner of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, today announced that the India vs Pakistan match on JioHotstar set historic milestones on reach and consumption. The marquee clash recorded an unprecedented digital reach of 163 million, making it the highest match reach for any ICC event in the T20 format. The fixture even surpassed the viewership for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 Final between India and South Africa.
It is to be noted that the much-awaited match was played amid the cricketing tensions between the PCB and the BCCI, and a few days after Pakistan's boycott controversy that ended after their negotiations with the ICC. The scintillating performance by India also ensured a 56 per cent growth in reach over India vs Pakistan in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 on digital.
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On mobile, the game clocked the highest match reach in the league stage of any ICC T20 event and 1.2x more than the last India-Pakistan clash at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024. Recognised as the Greatest Rivalry in cricket, the India vs Pakistan contest demonstrated its unmatched appeal as fans converged on JioHotstar. On CTV, the match reach was 2.4x higher than the India-Pakistan contest of the 2024 edition.
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The match generated a staggering 20 billion minutes of total watch time across all screens, underscoring the massive depth of fan engagement. This led to a 42 per cent increase in consumption compared to the previous edition's fixture, driven by the Indian national cricket team’s dominant performance as they extended their head-to-head record over Pakistan at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup to 8–1.
On linear TV, the highly-anticipated match delivered equally stellar performance, clocking a TVR growth of 71% to become the highest-rated India-Pakistan T20 contest since 2021. The record-breaking engagement on linear TV highlighted the sustained power of traditional broadcast in delivering a massive, collective viewing experience.
"The build-up to the India vs Pakistan game at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 and the match itself had all the ingredients of a spectacle. The record-breaking reach and consumption reflect the scale at which fans all over engage with this tournament across platforms," said Anup Govindan, Head – Sales, Sports, JioStar. "This tournament has already delivered thrilling moments for fans worldwide, and the response to the India-Pakistan clash sets the tone for an exciting ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 with the best yet to come."
"The unprecedented viewership and engagement numbers for India vs Pakistan is further proof of the nation’s obsession with the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup," said Siddharth Sharma, Head of Content, Sports - JioStar. "Complementing the Indian Cricket Team’s stellar exploits on the field with unmatched scale and choice of unique content offerings, JioStar is giving viewers more than one reason to stay locked in as India attempts to defeat history and become the first ever back-to-back T20 World Champions."