Rohit Sharma refuses to rate India above Pakistan

Rohit Sharma has fired a serious warning to the Suryakumar Yadav-led Indian cricket team ahead of the biggest match of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 against Pakistan. India will face Pakistan in their third Group A match on Sunday, February 15, at the R. Premadasa International Stadium in Colombo.

India’s strong record against Pakistan

India is currently the world’s No. 1 team in T20I cricket, and their record against Pakistan in T20 World Cups is very strong. Out of eight matches, the Men in Blue have won seven against the Men in Green. They have also beaten Pakistan in their last five T20I meetings.

This includes three wins in the Asia Cup last year and one win each in the 2022 and 2024 T20 World Cups. Given the record and form, many feel India will start as the stronger team again, but the ODI captain, Rohit Sharma, does not think like that.

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Rohit Sharma rejects the “Favourite” tag ahead of India vs Pakistan clash

Rohit, who led India to the T20 World Cup title in 2024, has given a clear message before this big match. The former Indian captain noted that in T20 cricket, nothing is fixed. He believes there is no such thing as a “favorite” team in this format; it only matters how they play on the match day.

Rohit Sharma said at an event in Dubai, “Firstly, I never believed in this word called ‘favorites.’ It’s such a funny game, and we’ve seen it now; there’s so much that has happened in these last 10 years of international cricket. All these teams have so much exposure now playing T20 cricket.

You can’t just go and think that it’s a two-point victory for us. You just have to play good cricket on that particular day to achieve those points; otherwise, you might end up going home without anything.”

Reminder of the 2021 T20 World Cup shock

Rohit also reminded everyone that India has lost to Pakistan before in a World Cup. India suffered a 10-wicket defeat in the 2021 T20 World Cup in Dubai, and the former Test and T20I captain was also part of that team. He reckoned that whichever team gives their best on Sunday will win the game.

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He signed off by saying, “So, it’s not about what you’ve done in the past; what is your team like? Are the players in form or not in form? You just have to play well on that particular day because every team is capable of beating any team on that particular day.”

Rohit Sharma speaking about T20 cricket🎙️ pic.twitter.com/ZOcrQBKQep

— 𝐑𝐮𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐢𝐢⁴⁵ (@rushiii_12) February 11, 2026

India aware of big challenge in Colombo

Earlier, India’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate admitted that there are challenges for the big game against Pakistan. He added, “It's going to be a challenge going to Colombo, where Pakistan has been there for the last two weeks, and we are fully focused on just bringing our best game to that fixture next week.”