Gap Between India and Pakistan is Quite Vast, 8-1 Record is Going To Get Bigger: Sanjay Bangar

Team India continued its tremendous form in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, beating Pakistan by 61 runs to register their third win in as many games. Speaking on JioStar’s ‘Follow the Blues’, JioStar expert Sanjay Bangar shared his thoughts on India’s performance against Pakistan, Ishan Kishan’s knock, and how the pacers set the tone in the powerplay by snaring three wickets.

“Courtesy of that massive victory, we can probably settle this debate that the gap between India and Pakistan is quite vast and is unlikely to reduce in the near future. So every time India plays Pakistan, I feel this record is only going to improve and the margin is going to get bigger.”

“To bat the way Ishan Kishan did against Pakistan, I believe a couple of factors have worked in his favour. Number one, he is batting at the top of the order. He has the backing of the team to go out and play with freedom, taking risks that, at the moment, are coming off. Number two, he is a man in form, and T20 cricket essentially is made for players in form. So he is maximising the purple patch he is in, and there was a clear method to the way he dominated. It wasn’t as though he was targeting every bowler. He first attacked Shaheen Shah Afridi in the second over, showed respect to the off-spinners, and when the leg-spinners came on, he took them to the cleaners. Even though he was facing the majority of the deliveries, he farmed the strike very well and made that 77 possible out of the 88 runs on the scoreboard.”

“I would like to compliment Suryakumar Yadav for the way he handled his bowling resources. Despite Pakistan bowling 18 overs of spin, he resisted the urge to start with spin and gave the fast bowlers the first opportunity against the Pakistan batters. That is where Hardik Pandya’s hard lengths and attacking the stumps were decisive and provided the effectiveness that was needed. As for Jasprit Bumrah, he out-thought Saim Ayub. On the first ball, Ayub did not really have a clue as the ball swung away and took a top edge that went for six. The very next ball, Bumrah set him up beautifully with an in-dipping delivery to the left-hander. All in all, it was a fabulous performance from the Indian seamers as well.”