India vs Pakistan, ICC T20 World Cup 2026: All eyes will be on India's combination when they take the field against Pakistan in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 match 27 at the R.Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Sunday, February 15. The Men in Blue are expected to introduce changes in their lineup, considering the different conditions at the venue as compared to what they have witnessed in the first two games.
While Abhishek Sharma is all set to make a hit return to the side after recovering from his stomach issue, Sanju Samson will have to sit out. Notably, Abhishek missed the second game against Namibia, and Samson couldn't capitalise on the opportunity at the top of the order. It is most likely that India will come up with a change in the bowling combination as well, with Kuldeep Yadav expected to feature against Pakistan.
ALSO READ: Suryakumar Yadav Unlikely To Shake Hands With Salman Agha During IND vs PAK T20 World Cup 2026 Match
The conditions at the R.Premadasa Stadium have seen a promising amount of assistance for the spinners, and Kuldeep's inclusion will only add to dominance in the setup, which already includes the in-form Varun Chakravarthy and Axar Patel. Kuldeep is yet to play a match in the ongoing T20 World Cup, but India could use their senior spinner against one of his favourite opponents. It will be interesting to see who sits out if India decides to bring in Kuldeep.
Why India Could Include Kuldeep Yadav In Playing XI Against Pakistan?
Kuldeep’s performance against Pakistan has been exceptional, having consistently troubled their middle-order batsmen. In 2025, he played three games against Pakistan in the Asia Cup, where he finished with eight wickets, including four scalps in the final that India won. He averaged 9.87 with an economy rate of 6.58. With a long batting line-up, the Indian team can bank on Kuldeep to run through Pakistan’s middle-order.
Suryakumar Yadav even hinted at Kuldeep's possible return to the side for the game, mentioning that the team should continue with the combination they fielded during the Asia Cup last year in Dubai against Pakistan, taking the similar conditions into consideration.
The inclusion of Kuldeep will have to come at the expense of either Rinku Singh or Arshdeep Singh. Bringing in Kuldeep is also a massively tantalising option because of his hold over Babar Azam. "It's very difficult to decide which fast bowler to play. How many fast bowlers and spinners to play because all the fast bowlers in the squad - Bumrah, Arshdeep and Siraj - are good and all the spinners are good too," Suryakumar said in the pre-match press conference.
"But the combination that has worked for us before, like when we played the Asia Cup (in 2025 at Dubai), there was a similar type of wicket, a bigger ground. This is also a similar, bigger ground, but the wicket will be better from there. So, I feel similar types of combinations will be played here. But it's a good headache and a very difficult call to give a break to a fast bowler or a good spinner and play an extra batsman," he added.
India vs Pakistan Squads, T20 World Cup 2026:
India Squad: Ishan Kishan (wk), Sanju Samson, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Rinku Singh, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah.
Pakistan Squad: Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Ali Agha (c), Babar Azam, Usman Khan, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Usman Tariq, Abrar Ahmed, Salman Mirza, Fakhar Zaman, Naseem Shah, Khawaja Nafay