We always sensed that the Pakistan T20 World Cup game would happen, says India coach ten Doeschate
The uncertainty over the high-octane T20 World Cup Group-A fixture between India and Pakistan in Colombo on February 15 was lifted late on Monday night. Before the Men in Blue took part in a training session under lights at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Tuesday, in the lead-up to Thursday’s clash against Namibia, assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate weighed in on the confirmation that the clash between the arch-rivals will go ahead.
“First of all, I think it’s great that the game is back on. We kind of never changed our preparation, that the game wasn’t going to happen, we were always under the impression that something would transpire and we would play. We got confirmation late yesterday and early this morning that the game was going to go ahead and we’d like to have another chance to play against a quality side,” ten Doeschate told the media here.
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In India’s 29-run victory against the United States of America, an indisposed Jasprit Bumrah was missing in action while Abhishek Sharma didn’t take any part in the second half of the game after getting out for a first-ball duck. Bumrah and Washington Sundar, who has recovered from a rib injury, were back in training on Tuesday. Abhishek wasn’t part of the practice session.
“Abhishek has still got a few issues with his tummy, we hope that he’ll be available for the game. Bumrah has been off 10 days without bowling, but he’s feeling a lot better and moving a lot better,” ten Doeschate informed.
Published on Feb 10, 2026
