Pakistan’s defeat to England in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 Super Eight stage has made their path to the semi-finals much more difficult.
After the loss, Pakistan no longer controls its own qualification. Their first and most important task is to defeat Sri Lanka on February 28. Without that win, their semi-final hopes will effectively come to an end.
Even if Pakistan beats Sri Lanka, their progress will depend on the outcomes of the remaining matches involving England, New Zealand, and Sri Lanka. Net Run Rate could also play a decisive role if teams end up level on points.
In one possible scenario, Pakistan beat Sri Lanka, England beat New Zealand, and Sri Lanka either defeats New Zealand or their match is washed out. In that case, New Zealand would drop crucial points, keeping Pakistan’s chances alive.
In another scenario, Pakistan beat Sri Lanka, England beat New Zealand, and New Zealand beat Sri Lanka. Here, Pakistan would need to finish with a better Net Run Rate than New Zealand. That means not just winning, but winning by a strong margin.
The most complicated scenario would be if Pakistan beat Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka defeats New Zealand, and New Zealand beat England. In that situation, Pakistan would need to have a superior Net Run Rate compared to both England and New Zealand.
With little room for error, Pakistan must first focus on securing a convincing win against Sri Lanka. After that, they will have to rely on favorable results from other matches and possibly Net Run Rate calculations to secure a place in the semi-finals.
