“As a captain, I didn’t understand Salman Agha’s approach” - Irfan Pathan slams Pakistan’s batting approach

Irfan Pathan criticizes "As a captain, I didn't understand Salman Agha's approach" after Pakistan's 61-run T20 World Cup 2026 defeat, questioning tactical decisions and reckless batting collapse under pressure at Premadasa where poor shot selection exposed leadership flaws against India's clinical execution.

16 Feb 2026 15:12 IST

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Former Indian all-rounder and commentator Irfan Pathan has slammed the Pakistani batting line-up for making the game one-sided within the powerplay overs of the second innings as India eventually bagged a 61-run win on Sunday, in Colombo.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, the former cricketer lashed out at the Pakistan captain, Salman Ali Agha’s approach when two wickets were down for his side. Notably, Agha went for a poor shot, losing his wicket to Jasprit Bumrah as Pakistan were 13/3 in two overs.

"Our Indian team’s bowling is really strong, very sharp, and it was clearly visible when they came on to bowl. In the first over, Hardik dismissed Sahibzada Farhan. He tried to play a cross-batted shot on a length ball, but the ball hung in the air. Then Jasprit Bumrah straight away goes for the yorker, delivers a sharp in-swinging yorker, gets the LBW, and then comes Salman Ali Agha,” Irfan Pathan said on his YouTube channel.

"As a captain, I didn’t understand his approach. When two wickets have fallen, you need to consolidate a bit, but he went after Bumrah with big shots. And what happened? Within two overs, three wickets went down, including the captain, playing poor shots. This approach didn’t make sense. The score wasn’t even over 200," he added.

Shifting our focus to the details of the game, India was tasked to bat first. The Indian batters, led by Ishan Kishan, posted a good-looking total of 175/7 in 20 overs. Kishan scored 77 runs off 40 balls with 10 fours and three sixes at a strike rate of 192.5 on a tricky wicket.

In response, Pakistan lost wickets at regular intervals as they got bundled out for 114 runs in 18 overs. Usman Khan was the top scorer with 44 runs in 34 balls. Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel and Varun Chakravarthy scalped two wickets apiece. With this victory, India qualified for the Super 8 stage, having topped the Group A standings with eight points.

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