ndia opened their 2026 T20 World Cup campaign with a commanding 64-run victory over Pakistan at Edgbaston on Sunday, driven by Smriti Mandhana’s fifth World Cup half-century, a late assault from Richa Ghosh, and a record-breaking five-wicket haul from Deepti Sharma.
Brief scores: India 170 for 6 in 20 overs (Smriti Mandhana 68, Harmanpreet Kaur 36, Richa Ghosh 34; Fatima Sana 2 for 33) beat Pakistan 106 all out in 17 overs (Muneeba Ali 41; Deepti Sharma 5 for 10, Sree Charani 3 for 21) by 64 runs.
Electing to bat on a helpful surface, India stumbled early. Shafali Verma launched the innings with a six off the first ball but fell in the same over, leaving the top order unsettled. Jemimah Rodrigues managed only one from seven before becoming the maiden T20I wicket of World Cup debutant Tasmia Rubab.
Mandhana, at times scratchy early on, found her timing and rebuilt alongside captain Harmanpreet Kaur in a crucial 91-run stand for the third wicket. Harmanpreet played anchor while Mandhana accelerated, reaching fifty from 34 balls despite two lives that Pakistan failed to capitalise on.
Mandhana then shifted into a higher gear, striking a boundary off Rameen Shamim and a six off Sadia Iqbal as Harmanpreet joined the attack with consecutive boundaries off the world’s top-ranked T20 bowler. India plundered 19 from the 13th over and moved past 100.
Pakistan finally broke through when Rameen removed Mandhana on the last ball of her spell. Bharati Fulmali departed quickly on debut, and Harmanpreet’s 36 from 35 balls ended when Fatima Sana had her caught.
Ghosh transformed the finish. After a cautious start, she targeted Rubab in the 19th over with a sequence of four, six, four, and four — 23 runs from the over — pushing India past 150 before she was bowled on the penultimate ball for 34 at a strike rate of 200. India closed on 170 for six.
Pakistan’s chase began brightly through Muneeba Ali, who punished loose deliveries after an early drop. India turned to Deepti, who built pressure and removed Gull Feroza when a reverse sweep found backward point. Ayesha Zafar responded with back-to-back boundaries off Arundhati Reddy as Pakistan reached 52 for one at the powerplay mark.
The middle overs turned the match. Deepti had Zafar caught by a diving Mandhana for 12, and left-arm spinner Sree Charani removed Saira Jabeen cheaply in her first over. Muneeba briefly broke a boundary drought, but her run-out opened the door. Shafali Verma removed Fatima Sana at cover to leave Pakistan 77 for four.
Sidra Amin fell to Charani, who finished with three for 21, and Rameen Shamim followed soon after. Deepti returned to mop up the tail, completing five for 10 — a landmark spell that made her the most successful bowler in women’s T20I history.