India vs Pakistan Players
The ultimate player-by-player comparison — Babar vs Kohli, Shaheen vs Bumrah, squads, head-to-head records and every 2026 clash analysed.
Last updated: 11 October 2026
The Essentials
Rivalry at a Glance
The numbers behind cricket’s biggest fixture.
The Great Debate
Babar Azam vs Virat Kohli
Once spoken in the same breath — the numbers against each other tell a harder story.
| vs Each Other (T20Is) | Babar Azam | Virat Kohli |
|---|---|---|
| Matches | 6 | 11 |
| Runs | 110 | 492 |
| Average | 22.00 | 70.28 |
| Fifties | 1 (68* in 2021) | 5 |
| Defining knock | 68* (2021, 10-wkt win) | 82* (MCG 2022) |
Babar’s scores vs India since 2021 read 10, 14, 0, 13, 5 — while Kohli’s MCG 2022 masterpiece (82* off 53) remains the rivalry’s greatest innings. The debate isn’t dead, but the head-to-head is one-sided. Full Babar vs Kohli comparison →
Pace Battle
Shaheen Afridi vs Jasprit Bumrah
The new-ball duel that decides India-Pakistan games.
Shaheen Shah Afridi
Left-arm thunder — his opening spells (KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma in 2021) are Pakistan’s weapon. At the 2026 World Cup clash he fought with the bat (23* off 19) after the top order fell.
Jasprit Bumrah
The world’s best T20 bowler — 2/17 off 2 overs against Pakistan in February 2026, dismissing Saim Ayub and Agha Salman. Unplayable yorkers, ice-cold temperament.
2026 Squads
Squad Comparison: T20 World Cup 2026
How the two 15-man squads stacked up.
Pakistan
Salman Ali Agha (c), Babar Azam, Saim Ayub, Fakhar Zaman, Sahibzada Farhan (wk), Usman Khan (wk), Nafay (wk), Shadab Khan, Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Salman Mirza, Abrar Ahmed, Usman Tariq. Strength: pace + mystery spin. Weakness: batting depth.
India
Suryakumar Yadav (c), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Md. Siraj, Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Rinku Singh. Strength: batting depth + spin variety.
India’s spin quartet (Kuldeep, Varun, Axar, Washington) took 7 wickets in the February clash — the difference between the sides.
The Record
Head-to-Head: All Formats
212 meetings since 1952 — Pakistan lead overall, India dominate the shortest format.
| Format | Matches | India Wins | Pakistan Wins | Draw/NR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tests | 59 | 9 | 12 | 38 |
| ODIs | 136 | 58 | 73 | 5 |
| T20Is | 17 | 14 | 3 | 0 |
| Total | 212 | 81 | 88 | 43 |
Pakistan’s ODI dominance (73–58) is built on the 80s–2000s; India’s T20I stranglehold (14–3) defines the modern era. Full head-to-head history →
15 February 2026
T20 World Cup 2026: India Won by 61 Runs
Colombo’s R. Premadasa Stadium — the group-stage clash that exposed the gap.
India’s spinners strangled Pakistan: Axar Patel 2/29, Varun Chakravarthy 2/17, Kuldeep Yadav 1/14, with Bumrah (2/17) and Hardik Pandya (2/16) striking early. Pakistan crumbled — Farhan 0, Saim 6, Babar 5, Agha 4 — only Usman Khan’s 44 off 34 and Shaheen’s 23* offering resistance. Irfan Pathan’s verdict stung: “Stop comparing Babar Azam with Virat Kohli.” Full match analysis →
28 September 2025
Asia Cup 2025 Final: India Won by 5 Wickets
Dubai — Pakistan’s 146 all out wasn’t enough.
Sahibzada Farhan (57 off 39) and Fakhar Zaman (46 off 28) gave Pakistan hope, but Kuldeep Yadav’s 4/30 ripped through the middle order and Tilak Varma’s unbeaten 69 guided India home. Back-to-back final defeats to India (Champions Trophy 2025 group stage included) underline the current gulf. Asia Cup final report →
Tale of the Tape
Trophy Cabinets Compared
Silverware doesn’t lie — but it needs context.
| Title | India | Pakistan |
|---|---|---|
| ODI World Cup | 2 (1983, 2011) | 1 (1992) |
| T20 World Cup | 3 | 1 (2009) |
| Champions Trophy | 3 | 1 (2017) |
| Asia Cup | 9 | 2 |
| U-19 World Cup | 6 | 2 |
| Total senior titles | 18 | 6 |
India’s trophy dominance is a 21st-century story — Pakistan’s 90s supremacy built the all-time head-to-head lead. Both eras are real; the current one belongs to India.
Fantasy Pick
Combined Best XI
Picking one team from both squads — the honest selection.
Abhishek Sharma, Saim Ayub, Virat Kohli (on legacy — or Tilak Varma on current form), Suryakumar Yadav (c), Hardik Pandya, Shadab Khan, Axar Patel, Shaheen Afridi, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy. Pakistan contribute the new-ball pair and the all-rounder; India supply the batting core and spin depth. The 7–4 split reflects where the rivalry stands in 2026. Combined XI debate →
Folklore
Memorable Matches
The games that define the rivalry — on both sides.
2021: The 10-Wicket Rout
Dubai — Shaheen ripped out Rohit and Rahul, then Babar (68*) and Rizwan (79*) chased 152 without losing a wicket. Pakistan’s first-ever World Cup win over India, and the most complete.
2022: Kohli’s MCG Masterpiece
Melbourne — 82* off 53, the two sixes off Haris Rauf, the no-ball drama. The greatest T20I innings ever played, in the rivalry’s greatest chase.
2017: Champions Trophy Final
The Oval — Fakhar Zaman’s 114, Mohammad Amir’s opening spell (Rohit, Kohli, Dhawan), 180-run annihilation. Pakistan’s finest hour against India.
2007: The Bowl-Out
Durban — the inaugural T20 World Cup group game tied, settled by a bowl-out. Absurd, unrepeatable, and the perfect birth of the T20 rivalry.
October 2026
Asian Games 2026 Meeting
Aichi-Nagoya — the development squads clashed too.
India beat Pakistan by 19 runs in the Asian Games 2026 T20 meeting on 2 October — despite Hasan Nawaz’s stunning 96 off 51 balls (5 fours, 7 sixes) for Pakistan. India’s Axar Patel (2/29) and Washington Sundar (2/29) held their nerve. With the final carrying a 40% rain forecast and shared-gold rules if washed out, the tournament added another chapter to the rivalry’s strangest formats.
Honest Analysis
What Pakistan Must Fix
Closing the gap isn’t about passion — it’s about three technical fixes.
Play Spin Better
Axar, Kuldeep and Varun took 5/60 between them in February. Pakistan’s middle order must learn to rotate strike against quality spin instead of gifting wickets to the slog sweep.
Batting Depth
India bat to No.8 with hitters; Pakistan’s tail starts at No.7. The all-rounder pipeline (Nawaz, Faheem, Minhas) must deliver genuine late-order power.
Big-Match Temperament
The talent is real — Saim, Farhan, Naseem would walk into most sides. What’s missing is the cold-blooded game sense India shows in knockouts. That comes from winning, and winning starts with beating India.
Answers
Frequently Asked Questions
What fans ask most about the rivalry — answered.
Who is better: India or Pakistan in cricket?
Currently India — World No.1 across formats, 14–3 in T20Is, winners of the last three ICC meetings. Historically Pakistan lead 88–81 across 212 matches, dominating Tests and ODIs.
When is the next India vs Pakistan match?
After the T20 World Cup 2026 group clash (15 Feb, won by India) and the Asian Games 2026 meeting (Oct, won by India), the next fixture depends on ICC/ACC scheduling — check our match update page.
Who has scored most runs in India-Pakistan matches?
Across formats, Pakistan’s Inzamam-ul-Haq and Saeed Anwar (ODIs) and India’s Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli lead the charts; Kohli averages 70.28 vs Pakistan in T20Is.
Why don’t India and Pakistan play bilateral series?
No bilateral series since 2012–13 due to political tensions — the teams meet only in ICC and ACC tournaments, on neutral venues.
Has Pakistan ever beaten India in a World Cup?
Yes — the famous 10-wicket win at the 2021 T20 World Cup in Dubai (Babar 68*, Rizwan 79*), plus the 2017 Champions Trophy final triumph. In ODI World Cups, India remain unbeaten against Pakistan.
What is “India Pak cricket”?
Shorthand for the India–Pakistan cricket rivalry — the sport’s most-watched fixture, drawing over a billion viewers for World Cup clashes.
Every Duel, Every Stat, Every Classic
10 detailed guides — player comparisons, head-to-head records and match analyses.
Feature Pakistan’s Pakistan Guides cover the India–Pakistan rivalry with verified stats and honest analysis — for fans on both sides of the border.