PAK take on NED in the tournament opener on Saturday, Feb 7
As for Colombo's weather, expect some sunlight and mild showers
Live streaming and telecast info listed below
The ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 kick-starts with Pakistan taking on the Netherlands on Saturday, February 7 in Colombo. The Men In Green ended their pre-WC campaign with a 3-0 series sweep against Australia with one notably being a 111-run victory, which is their largest ever T20 win margin.
As for the Dutch, they qualified for the tourney at the top of the Europe Regional Qualifier and will look to upset the odds against an inconsistent Pakistan.
All eyes will be on Babar Azam as the batter looks to get off with some runs under his belt in the tournament. Saim Ayub will be one to watch as well whereas in Netherlands camp, the likes of Max O'Dowd and Michael Levitt will want to make an impression.
Pakistan Vs Netherlands, ICC T20 World Cup 2026: Best Finishes
PAK:
| Year | Round |
| 2007 | Runners-up |
| 2009 | Champions |
| 2010 | Semi-finals |
| 2012 | Semi-finals |
| 2014 | Super 10 |
| 2016 | Super 10 |
| 2021 | Semi-finals |
| 2022 | Runners-up |
| 2024 | Group Stage |
NED:
| Year | Round |
| 2007 | Did not qualify |
| 2009 | Group stage |
| 2010 | Did not qualify |
| 2012 | Did not qualify |
| 2014 | Super 10 |
| 2016 | Group stage |
| 2021 | Group stage |
| 2022 | Super 12 |
| 2024 | Group stage |
| 2026 | Qualified |
Pakistan Vs Netherlands, ICC T20 World Cup 2026: H2H
These two nations have faced each other just twice on the international stage with Pakistan dominating in both the meetings.
Pakistan Vs Netherlands, ICC T20 World Cup 2026: Weather Report
With the match being held in Sri Lanka, there are chances of rain in Colombo on Saturday. As per AccuWeather, there will good amount of sunlight and cloud cover in the morning, but as day goes by there will be couple of showers in the afternoon.
Pakistan Vs Netherlands, ICC T20 World Cup 2026: Pitch Report
The Sinhalese Sports Club has hosted 9 T20Is so far with teams batting first winning three and five won by batting second. Expect toss to play a part in the match, especially the game being played in the morning.
Pakistan Vs Netherlands, ICC T20 World Cup 2026: Live Streaming
T20 World Cup 2026 matches will be available for live TV telecast across Star Sports Network channels in India. Fans can also watch the live stream on the JioHotstar app and website.
Pakistan Vs Netherlands, ICC T20 World Cup 2026: Squads
Netherlands Squad: Michael Levitt, Max ODowd, Bas de Leede, Zach Lion Cachet, Colin Ackermann, Scott Edwards(w/c), Noah Croes, Roelof van der Merwe, Logan van Beek, Aryan Dutt, Kyle Klein, Paul van Meekeren, Timm van der Gugten, Saqib Zulfiqar, Fred Klaassen
Pakistan Squad: Fakhar Zaman, Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Salman Agha(c), Khawaja Nafay(w), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Abrar Ahmed, Sahibzada Farhan, Usman Khan, Salman Mirza, Usman Tariq.
The build-up to the 10th edition of the T20 World Cup was plagued by ICC's decision to remove Bangladesh for their refusal to play matches in India, and Pakistan's reported forfeiture of India fixture(s) -- both decisions taken by their respective governments.
India are bidding to become the first team to win the marquee event at home and defend the title. During the month-long tournament, 20 teams will fight for the global crown in the shortest format of the game. In all, 55 matches will be played across eight venues -- five in India and three in Sri Lanka.
ICC T20 World Cup 2026 Teams
Afghanistan, Australia (2021 champions), Canada, England (2010 and 2022 champions), India (2007 and 2024 champions), Ireland, Italy (debutants), Namibia, Nepal, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Oman, Pakistan (2009 champions), Scotland, South Africa, Sri Lanka (2014 champions), United Arab Emirates, United States, West Indies (2012 and 2016 champions), and Zimbabwe.
Scotland replaced Bangladesh.
