Sourav Ganguly's big prediction about India vs Pakistan T20 World Cup 2026 clash: 'it is not going to be easy'

The Pakistan government took the expected U-turn on Monday and withdrew its decision to boycott the India game in the T20 World Cup 2026. The move brought an end to the fortnight-long standoff between PCB and ICC, confirming the India vs Pakistan encounter on February 15 in Colombo.

As Pakistan are officially on board for the clash against India, the predictions on what will transpire this time when the two arch-rivals will face off have already began surfacing. Paying heed to the subject, former India captain Sourav Ganguly expressed his thoughts on what may go down in the India vs Pakistan match this time.

According to Ganguly, it will be a formidable challenge for Pakistan to match the colossal strength of India.

Ganguly said, "It will be a big World Cup match. The match is on 15th February, it is not going to be easy for Pakistan to defeat India. India is a very good team," Ganguly told ANI.

The Suryakumar Yadav-led side will enter as the favourites in the match, as they are currently in sublime form and enjoy an overwhelming head-to-head record against Pakistan in the T20 World Cup. The bitter rivals have faced each other eight times in the tournament before, and India emerged victorious in seven of them. Thus, India will have the psychological edge, but the pressure of an IND vs PAK game exceeds the extent, so the Indian side will face the heat on Sunday, February 15.

Ganguly impressed with the performance of minnows

Sourav Ganguly additionally shared his thoughts on the terrific start of the T20 World Cup 2026, and is impressed with how the associate nations have played so far, giving immense fight to the mainstream teams. Lastly, he gave a shout-out to Indian players Abhishek Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, and Ishan Kishan, probably because they are individually capable of turning the tide of the game.

"The tournament has started really well. So far, it doesn't look that any team is out of place be it Netherlands, Scotland or Nepal. In the Indian team, Abhishek Sharma, Bumrah, Surya, and Ishan Kishan are my favourites," he said.

India's next T20 World Cup 2026 fixture is against Namibia. The match will take place on Thursday, February 12, in Delhi.

Team India's T20 World Cup 2026 squad: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Rinku Singh.