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4 min readUpdated: Feb 7, 2026 06:14 PM IST
Faheem Ashraf's 11-ball 29 helped Pakistan beat Netherlands in the T20 World Cup 2026 opener in Colombo. (PHOTO: AP)
With 23 runs needed off 11 balls, Faheem Ashraf mishit a low full toss high into the Colombo sky. It wasn’t just the ball, but Pakistan’s hopes of winning their opening match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, that was up in the air. The Netherlands, those Europeans who love to cause a flutter or two at World Cups, were on the brink of another famous win… in fact, it was theirs to lose at that point. But, alas, Max O’Dowd couldn’t hold on to the high-pressure, yet easily grabbable, skier. Ashraf, who had hit the first ball of the Logan van Beek over for a six already, picked up two runs off that ball, and then went on to smash two more sixes and gobble up a streaky four. The match decisively swung in Pakistan’s favour after their middle and lower-middle order had almost contrived to pull defeat from the jaws of victory.
In those moments, Ashraf would say later, it wasn’t just his ‘zubaan’ that was uttering prayers. “The feeling in those moments —I just said this outside before coming here — at that time, it wasn’t only my tongue that was praying, but every part of my body was praying for that catch to be dropped,” the allrounder chuckled at the end of the press conference after rescuing Pakistan out of sufferiung some serious embarrassment.
After appearing to be cruising during most of the run-chase, Pakistan somehow managed to make the Netherlands favourites with some bizarre batting, slipping from 98/2 to 114/7. Dot balls piled up, wickets tumbled and the Dutch were one good over away from stunning the Asian giants. But Ashraf said he and Shaheen Shah Afridi, who remained unbeaten at the end of a 3-wicket win with 3 balls to spare in a chase of 148, kept the belief and knew one good over was enough to seal the deal.
“After hitting the winning runs, and that too while representing Pakistan, you feel a sense of peace,” Ashraf, who remained not out with a 11-ball 29 and proved his worth in the lower order, said. “You feel that the team was in such a bad situation, but you still won. The most peaceful feeling is that you have won the first match of the World Cup and you scored the winning runs. There is nothing more satisfying than that.”
“As for the collapse, in cricket there are ups and downs. Sometimes your top order doesn’t score, sometimes your middle order doesn’t score, and sometimes your lower order doesn’t score. It is very rare that all eleven players perform in a match. Not everyone performs in every game. Those who didn’t perform today, God willing, will perform in the next match.”
Ashraf did, however, concede that the team shouldn’t have gotten themselves in such a position. “I think because we lost back-to-back wickets, it became a little difficult for us. When wickets fall in quick succession, especially at that stage, you need a partnership. We lacked a partnership there. If we had even a 15–20 run partnership at that time, the match wouldn’t have come to such a situation.”
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