Pakistan almost lost their opening match of the T20 World Cup 2026 against the Netherlands, but the Men in Green will put everything aside as they face the United States of America in the second match. The 12th match of the group stage will be played at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo starting at 7 pm today, marking the first international floodlit match at the stadium.

A worrying factor for Pakistan is that the United States of America gave India a tough fight in their first match, surprising all cricket fans. This means that the Pakistan vs. USA match is likely to be much easier than it appears on paper. The Pakistani camp may still not have forgotten the last edition's match, when the USA defeated Pakistan in a Super Over.

Pakistan's first match of the tournament was also played at the Sinhalese Sports Club against the Netherlands in daytime conditions. Salman Agha and company won the toss and invited the Netherlands to bat first. Batting first, the Netherlands scored 147 runs for the loss of 10 wickets in 19.5 overs. Chasing the target, Pakistan narrowly won the match by three wickets in 19.3 overs.

Pakistan vs USA - Toss

Since this is a night match, any team winning the toss will likely choose to bowl first, as the dew factor could play a significant role as the game progresses. Batting will become easier in the second innings. The toss between the two teams will take place at 6:30 PM IST.

Pakistan vs USA - Playing XI

After a narrow win against the Netherlands, Pakistan are expected to stick to their previous playing eleven.

Pakistan Probable XI:Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Agha (c), Babar Azam, Usman Khan (wk), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Salman Mirza, Abrar Ahmed

USA main bowler Ali Khan's participation is not confirmed, so the team's bowling attack may be slightly weakened. Bowler Jasdeep Singh, who was selected for the WC squad for the first time, has also been ruled out of the tournament, while Pakistani-born bowler Ehsan Adil may make his debut in the team today.

USA Probable XI: Andries Gous (wk), Saiteja Mukkamalla, Monank Patel (c), Milind Kumar, Sanjay Krishnamurthi, Shubham Ranjane, Harmeet Singh, Mohammad Mohsin, Shadley van Schalkwyk, Ehsan Adil/Ali Khan, Saurabh Netravalkar

Sinhalese Sports Club - Pitch Report

The pitch at Sinhalese Sports Club, Colombo is expected to offer a balanced contest between bat and ball. Early overs could favor the bowlers with some movement, but the surface slows down later, helping batters to build innings. Spinners are likely to play a key role in the middle overs, and teams batting first will aim to post a competitive score of around 160–170 runs to put pressure on the opposition.

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