Left in awe of India’s explosive T20I batting display in Guwahati on Sunday night, where Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan and captain Suryakumar Yadav chased down 154 in just 10 overs against New Zealand, veteran cricketer Kris Srikkanth took a swipe at Pakistan, urging them to “find an excuse” and stay away from the upcoming T20 World Cup. Srikkanth’s remark came amid Pakistan indicating a potential boycott of the tournament following the ICC’s decision in the Bangladesh matter.
India’s batters went into overdrive against the Kiwi bowlers, with the least runs conceded in an over being 11 — and that happened only twice in the 10-over chase. Abhishek smashed a 14-ball fifty, while Suryakumar clobbered 57 off 26 deliveries as India raced to 155 in just 60 balls to seal a 3–0 series sweep. It was the second-fastest successful chase of a 150-plus target in T20I history. The performance came just days after India chased down 209 in only 15.2 overs — the fastest 200-plus chase by a full-member nation in T20I cricket.
Pakistan in T20 World Cup 2026 Live Updates
Amid the batting blitzkrieg, Srikkanth, speaking on his YouTube channel, suggested it would be wiser for Pakistan to stay away from the World Cup and avoid embarrassment, especially given the two sides are drawn in the same group and scheduled to meet on February 15 in Colombo.
“In the last match, India scored 209 in 15 overs. In this match, they scored 150 in 10 overs. Seeing this, many teams might say ‘no, we are not coming. You can keep the cup’,” Srikkanth said. “Hey Pakistan, don’t come. Your man Mohsin Naqvi has been talking about it — don’t come. You will be thrashed. A six hit in Colombo will land in Madras. Beware. The best option is to stay away. Find an excuse and don’t come. These boys will thrash them hard. This will send an alarming signal to every cricket team in the world. This kind of hitting in T20 cricket — I have never seen anything like it.”
Pakistan await final World Cup signal from government
{{/usCountry}}“In the last match, India scored 209 in 15 overs. In this match, they scored 150 in 10 overs. Seeing this, many teams might say ‘no, we are not coming. You can keep the cup’,” Srikkanth said. “Hey Pakistan, don’t come. Your man Mohsin Naqvi has been talking about it — don’t come. You will be thrashed. A six hit in Colombo will land in Madras. Beware. The best option is to stay away. Find an excuse and don’t come. These boys will thrash them hard. This will send an alarming signal to every cricket team in the world. This kind of hitting in T20 cricket — I have never seen anything like it.”
Pakistan await final World Cup signal from government
{{/usCountry}}PCB chief Naqvi said that the final binding call on their World Cup participation will be taken by the Pakistan government. The message was also rallied to the players shortly after the World Cup squad was announced.
“We are waiting for the government's advice and whatever the government tells us to do we will do it. If they don’t want us to go for the World Cup, we will follow it,” Naqvi informed Pakistan players and head coach Mike Hesson in a meeting in Lahore.
Later in a statement the PCB said the players backed the principled stance of the board to support Bangladesh.