Ishan Kishan storms past Pakistan’s bowlers with a blazing 77 off 40 balls, becoming only the fourth Indian to hit a T20 WC fifty against arch-rivals. Can India turn his explosive start into a massive total at Colombo’s Premadasa Stadium?
Ishan Kishan Stars in High-Voltage India-Pakistan T20 Clash
Colombo: Ishan Kishan became the fourth Indian batter to score a T20 World Cup half-century against arch-rivals Pakistan, joining Virat Kohli, Gautam Gambhir, and Robin Uthappa. Kishan’s explosive innings of 77 off 40 balls on Sunday helped India gain an early advantage in the high-voltage clash at R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.
The left-handed batter came out in aggressive mode, dispatching pacer Shaheen Afridi for a six and a four in the initial overs. Pakistan captain Salman Agha responded by turning to spin, but Kishan continued to dominate, hitting multiple boundaries off Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan, and Abrar Ahmed.
He scored 42 runs in the powerplay alone, surpassing Shubman Gill’s 35-run record in a similar phase at the Asia Cup.
Kishan reached his fifty in just 27 balls, marking the third-fastest fifty in India-Pakistan T20Is. He bettered Yuvraj Singh’s 29-ball effort from 2012, trailing only Mohammad Hafeez’s 23-ball fifty (2012) and Abhishek Sharma’s 25-ball fifty from last year’s Asia Cup.
His 77-run knock also became the third-highest individual score by an Indian in T20 World Cup matches against Pakistan, behind Kohli’s 82* (Melbourne, 2022) and Mohammad Rizwan’s 79* (Dubai, 2021).
Kishan eventually fell to part-time spinner Ayub, leaving the innings at 88/2. His contribution accounted for 87.5% of the team’s total runs at that stage. Despite the early loss of Abhishek Sharma for a duck, India now looks to Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma to capitalize and push the total to 170-180, which could be a competitive score at the Premadasa Stadium.
Kishan’s innings once again highlighted his ability to perform under pressure in high-stakes India-Pakistan encounters, further cementing his reputation as a key T20 World Cup performer.
