India thumped Pakistan by 61 runs in ICC T20 World Cup 2026
India have won 19 out of the 23 ICC matches played against Pakistan so far in ICC tournaments
It is one of the most priced matches in the world of sports across the globe
"According to me, if two teams play 15-20 matches and if [head-to-head] it is 7-7 or 8-7, then that is called a rivalry. But 13-0, 10-1….I don't know what the stats are. But this is not a rivalry anymore." India skipper Suryakumar Yadav's statement after last year's Asia Cup final reiterated the very similar feeling slowly taking prominence in every cricket fan's mind in the India-Pakistan game.
Once regarded as a mother of all battles doesn't feel like a rivalry anymore, does it? What was once regarded as the mother of all cricketing rivalries, has now become a money making machine and a compulsory fixture for revenue generation at every ICC event. That's India Vs Pakistan for you in the modern era.
It make tons of money for the broadcasters in terms of subscriptions and ad revenue, the ICC earns handsomely by selling the broadcasting rights, which in turn helps in running cricket around the world but the big questions remains what is in there for the spectators who comes in on the ground or tune in to watch a fierce spectacle between the arch-rivals - the answer is that they are mostly left wanting for more.
If you look at the last decade or so, the charm of an India-Pakistan battle has lost its sheen big time in terms of competitiveness on the field. While one team keeps dominating most of the times, the other shows glimpses of brilliance but mostly is not able to sustain it.
Let's take a look at the numbers which speaks of the sheer one-sidedness of the iconic rivalry in over the years. Since both teams face each other only in multi-nations tournament only let's look at what the records say in the ICC matches:
ICC T20 World Cups: India-Pakistan (Head-To-Head)
Matches: 9
India: 8
Pakistan: 1
ICC One-Day World Cups: India-Pakistan (Head-To-Head)
Matches: 8
India: 8
Pakistan: 0
ICC Champions Trophy: India-Pakistan (Head-To-Head)
Matches: 6
India: 3
Pakistan: 3
Apart from the Champions Trophy, India have had complete dominance over Pakistan in ICC tournaments having won 19 of the 23 matches played to date.
Since both teams play in multi-nation tournament only, the contrast between both teams in terms of performance becomes more evident. If we add the Asia Cup into the equation, then India have won all the last eight matches against Pakistan in all multi-national tournaments.
So, given the data evidence, it won't be wrong to say that the hype around the India-Pakistan game is more about the theatrics around the match rather than the on-field performance, and it also poses a big question that if the results stay the same, then it won't be that the marquee game will become just another cricket match.
