As India begin their training session, the pitch at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo remains covered. The concern of rain potentially impacting the game is very evident in the lead up to the match.

Suryakumar Yadav dismisses a question on the potential of bilateral cricket between India and Pakistan: "it's not in our hands. When I'm at the position where I can take that call I'll let you know."

"There's always pressure. With India-Pakistan, it's more of an occasion. No matter how much we say "it's just any other game", but it's a human tendency to be under pressure because it is not any other game. We don't play them often either. So the pressure is always there," says Suryakumar Yadav.

India's batting has struggled in the T20 World Cup 2026 so far. Despite two wins, India's middle order has been troubled by both USA and Namibia. Suryakumar Yadav does not mince any words on this subject:

"We had a scratchy start, we can't run away from the fact. There's no excuse. Everyone has played a lot of cricket, batters should have their own plans on a tricky wicket. We started well but had a hiccup, but then covered it well. It's the beauty of T20 cricket."

Suryakumar Yadav states that the Indian players are focusing on themselves and not on the opposition: "We have to see how we've been playing. We want to continue on that. We will focus on our strength. Not how the opposition is perform. Whoever will play better cricket will win the game. That's the only thing that matters."

Suryakumar Yadav makes one more cheeky remark on India's possible combination for the Pakistan game in Colombo. This time, SKY hints at left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav playing. "Do you want him to play? Okay then he will play," says SKY during the press conference.

Suryakumar Yadav remains tight-lipped on whether Team India will be willing to shake hands with Pakistan at toss time of their T20 World Cup 2026 match: "We'll see about handshake at toss. Wait for 24 hours."

There we go! India captain Suryakumar Yadav makes it clear that star opener Abhishek Sharma is set to play against Pakistan, making his comeback into the playing XI.

Suryakumar Yadav states that India cannot afford to come unprepared against Pakistan spinner Usman Tariq, who has made headlines for his unorthodox stop-start action: "Even if a question is out of syllabus you can't leave it. He's a different character but we can't surrender to him. We are all very excited."

Suryakumar Yadav makes a light-hearted joke in the press conference, hinting that Abhishek Sharma is likely fit to play. The Indian captain referred to Pakistan counterpart Salman Agha's earlier comments, when the latter had expressed his wish to face Abhishek.

"If Salman wants us to play Abhishek tomorrow, we shall play him," says SKY.

We are just about 20 minutes away from the start of Team India's press conference in Colombo. Additionally, NDTV learns that India are set to begin their pre-match training session at 6:00 PM IST.

We are not too far away from the start of India captain Suryakumar Yadav's press conference ahead of the blockbuster India-Pakistan clash. Stay tuned for all the live updates.

The pitch for tomorrow's match at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo has already been covered. It was raining not too long ago, and further rain is in the forecast later today and throughout tomorrow. The weather could end up being a big factor.

It is raining in Colombo at the moment. Gear up, folks, this could be a phrase you read or hear multiple times over the next day. Rain is in the forecast during the match hours as well. However, the positive bit is that the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo has an excellent drainage system.

India captain Suryakumar Yadav is set to address the media in the press conference in a couple of hours. It will be interesting to listen to the Indian skipper's perspective on some of the topics that were also asked to Agha.

Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha downplayed the importance of the toss in today's press conference, stating that the team that plays better cricket will win: "Toss cannot decide the game. If you play good cricket, you'll win. Cricket will matter, toss won't."

Salman Agha was asked on the chatter surrounding India-Pakistan clashes and asked to give his opinion on the matter as a sportsman, stepping away from politics. Here's what Agha responded:

"The game should be played in good spirits. What I believe doesn't matter anyway. The game should be played like it has been played since it started."

Salman Agha's interesting take on India batter Abhishek Sharma, who is a doubt for the game due to a stomach illness: "I hope Abhishek Sharma plays tomorrow. I really hope he's recovering well. We want to play against the best."

Pakistan captain Salman Agha was asked by NDTV on whether Pakistan would be willing to shake hands with India if the latter are ready to. Here's what Agha replied:
"We will find out tomorrow."

Agha stated that the form of star batter Babar Azam is not a worry for the Pakistan team, heading into the India game: "Babar Azam is not a concern for us. He has been scoring runs. And hopefully he'll score runs and help us tomorrow. We don't want to change the batting position too much."

Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha has admitted that the team does not have a good record against India when it comes to World Cups: "We cannot change history. We do not have good record against India in World Cups but will try for a better performance."

Pakistan's Usman Tariq has been in the middle of several allegations over his unorthodox action, but skipper Salman Agha isn't worried: "Usman has been cleared twice by the ICC. I don't know why there is talk about his action. He doesn't care about all this talk."

Pakistan captain Salman Agha speaks out on the hype and chatter surrounding spinner Usman Tariq ahead of the India match: "For us every player is equal. You guys have made Usman Tariq this big. He has been bowling well. He is our trump card."

Pakistan skipper Salman Ali Agha's press conference is underway in Colombo. Stay tuned as we bring you the live updates.

The weather is set to be a major concern for both teams. As per AccuWeather, there's going to be four hours of precipitation tomorrow evening. In that case, we could see the match getting shortened.

One of the major talking points in recent days has been the fitness concerns surrounding star India batter Abhishek Sharma. The opening batter missed India's previous match against Namibia, after being hospitalised for a stomach bug. Today, we're likely to get more clarity on whether the No. 1-ranked T20I batter in the world will be fit for tomorrow's contest.

Earlier this week, Pakistan reversed its initial decision to boycott the match against India, following discussions with the International Cricket Council (ICC). It will certainly be interesting to see what either side speaks on the matter ahead of the big match.

A very warm welcome to one and all. We are on the eve of the highly-anticipated India vs Pakistan clash at the T20 World Cup 2026. Today, it's time for the press conferences, where India captain Suryakumar Yadav and Pakistan skipper Salman Ali Agha are likely to speak.

Stay tuned for the live updates!