Colombo, Feb 7 (NationPress) In a gripping start to their T20 World Cup 2026 journey, Pakistan managed to fend off a challenge from The Netherlands to clinch a three-wicket victory in the tournament opener at the Sinhalese Sports Club on Saturday.

Pakistan began the match by effectively limiting the Netherlands to 147 all out in just 19.5 overs, with Salman Mirza shining as he bagged three wickets and Mohammad Nawaz, Abrar Ahmed, and Saim Ayub offering solid assistance.

After being invited to bat first, the Netherlands started strongly with Michael Levitt hitting quick boundaries and a six, helping them reach 28 in three overs. However, the tide turned when Mirza dismissed Max O'Dowd cheaply, followed by Levitt's exit due to a smart relay catch by Babar Azam and Shaheen Afridi. Although Bas de Leede and Colin Ackermann stabilized the innings at 50/2 at the end of the powerplay, wickets steadily fell.

Scott Edwards stood firm with a composed 37 and shared a brief 27-run partnership with de Leede, but Pakistan’s spinners tightened their grip. Edwards’ dismissal by Abrar Ahmed triggered a swift collapse, with Saim Ayub taking two wickets on his debut to dismiss Logan van Beek and Zach Lion-Cachet. The lower order crumbled as wickets fell late in the innings.

Mirza concluded with impressive figures of 3-24, and Abrar Ahmed picked up 2-23, ensuring the Netherlands finished well below par at 147.

In their response, Sahibzada Farhan and Saim Ayub initiated a decent chase, with Ayub striking Logan van Beek for three consecutive fours in the second over. However, the latter managed to dismiss him after he scored 24 off 13 balls.

Captain Salman Ali Agha and Farhan then sought to build momentum, looking good as they hit a series of boundaries, though the former mistimed a shot off Dutt and was caught by Michael Levitt. Nonetheless, the early fireworks helped Pakistan reach 61/2 at the end of the powerplay, putting them in a strong position.

Babar Azam struggled initially, taking 15 balls to score his first boundary while Farhan kept the scoreboard moving. However, a critical double-wicket maiden over by Paul van MeekerenRoelof van der Merwe.

As the match intensified, Pakistan faced another setback when Kyle Klein and Logan van Beek dismissed Mohammad Nawaz and Shadab Khan in consecutive deliveries.

In a thrilling finale, Pakistan required 33 runs from the last three overs. However, Faheem Ashraf turned the game around with three sixes and a boundary in the penultimate over, aided by a crucial dropped catch by O'Dowd. With just five runs needed from the last six balls, Faheem sealed the match with a four, sparing Pakistan from a potential disaster. The team breathed a sigh of relief, securing a victory that had seemed secure but almost slipped away.

Brief Scores: Netherlands 147 in 19.5 overs (Scott Edwards 37, Bas de Leede 30, Salman Mirza 3-24, Abrar Ahmed 2-23) lost to Pakistan 148/7 (Shahibzada Farhan 47, Faheem Ashraf 29; Paul van Meekeren 2-20, Aryan Dutt 2-33) by three wickets.