Monday 16 / February / 2026
Colombo : Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson admitted that his side failed to adapt to match conditions in their high-pressure encounter against India after Men in Green suffered a one-sided 61-run loss in the Group A match at the ICC Men's T20 World Cup.
During the post-match press conference, reflecting on the contest, Hesson said India capitalised better on a surface that offered significant assistance to spinners early on.
"With the ball, obviously it was spinning quite a lot initially, and I think the way Ishan Kishan played took the game away from us," he noted.
Hesson admitted that India managed to push the total beyond what Pakistan believed was a competitive score on the surface. "To be fair to India, they probably got about 25 above par on that surface."
However, the Pakistan coach pointed to his team's batting performance as the bigger concern. According to Hesson, the side failed to adjust its approach after assessing the pitch conditions, ultimately costing them the contest.
"In terms of adjusting to conditions, we didn't really give ourselves a chance," he remarked.
Pakistan's head coach has dismissed suggestions that opting to ball first was a defensive move, insisting the decision was based purely on pitch assessment rather than caution.
"Yeah, I mean, I've answered it. Both sides were going to bowl first because the pitch was soft and the ball spun twice as much in the first innings as in the second. There was talk before about the Australia game, which was a day game; this is a night game. So, as I said, nothing to do with the toss, it was just execution." Hesson said.
Hesson defended his team's bowling strategy in their high-pressure clash against India, addressing questions about the late deployment of Usman Tariq. "Usman Tariq is a really good player when players are going after him, and he's got a pretty specific role for us."
"Yes, he could have. But I think, Abrar Ahmed has been doing a really good job for us, as has Shadab Khan post power play. They both bowled an over that didn't go their way in terms of the lengths. But certainly I'd back those guys any day to do that job as they have done in the last five wins. So it didn't work today, but as I said, Usman Tariq's got a very clear role and I thought he was exceptional tonight," Hesson added.
Execution was missing, lost too many wickets in power-play: Pak skipper Salman Agha
Pakistan skipper Salman Agha admitted the spinners had an off day and execution was lacking, even though they've been solid for six months after a 61-run loss against India in the ongoing T20 World Cup in Colombo on Sunday.
Agha noted that Pakistan lost too many wickets in the powerplay. A knockout punch in the form of a half-century by Ishan Kishan and a collectively brilliant bowling performance helped India secure a 61-run win against Pakistan in the ICC T20 World Cup at Colombo on Sunday.
"Our spinners had an off day. Execution was missing in some parts. We believe in our spinners; they've done well in the last six months. We lost too many wickets in the powerplay with the bat. In the first innings, it was tacky; the ball was gripping. The execution was missing with the ball. Pitch played better in the second innings than it did in the first. In these kinds of games, the emotions are always going to be high. Have to deal with it. Have played enough games like that. Have a game in two days' time, have to look forward to that. Need to win that game and qualify for the Super Eights. Then it's a new tournament again," Agha said after the match.
