Overview:
He mocked them further, claiming that India could have enforced the follow-on given the strong total they had amassed.
Following India’s commanding win over Pakistan in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026, former spinner Ravichandran Ashwin humorously remarked that India had piled up enough runs to enforce a follow-on against Pakistan on the challenging Colombo pitch.
India posted a total of 174 runs at the R Premadasa Stadium, where the surface offered grip and turn, challenging the batters. Pakistan’s chase of 175 fell apart early, as they lost four wickets during the powerplay.
After an early collapse, Pakistan never found their rhythm, eventually being bowled out for a low total of 114 runs in 18 overs. Once again, India’s technical superiority was on full display as they dominated the contest.
Ashwin joked that Pakistan’s batters were unable to handle the chase on the challenging Premadasa pitch. He mocked them further, claiming that India could have enforced the follow-on given the strong total they had amassed.
Ashwin – 174 on this pitch was enough to give the follow-on to Pakistan 🤣 pic.twitter.com/WZgaYojoIX
— Tejash (@Tejashyyyyy) February 16, 2026
“174 runs on this pitch — we could have enforced the follow-on against Pakistan. Seriously, if we had added just 20 more runs, we’d have been in a position to enforce follow on,” Ashwin added.
Pakistan struggled to adapt to the challenging conditions at the Colombo pitch, despite being based in the city since the start of the tournament. Currently sitting third in Group A, a defeat in their final group match against Namibia would likely see them eliminated from the competition. Pakistan wrap up their group-stage campaign with a match on February 18.