India start as favourites, but will have to be careful: Nayan Mongia ahead of India vs Pakistan clash

Vadodara (Gujarat) [India], February 15 (ANI): Former Indian cricketer Nayan Mongia backed Team India as the favourites to win Sunday's much-awaited India vs Pakistan T20 World Cup 2026 match at Colombo's R Premadasa Stadium. He also hailed the Indian star all-rounder Hardik Pandya as one of the best in the T20 format and lauded his recent form.
Former India wicketkeeper Nayan Mongia praised Hardik Pandya as one of the best T20 all-rounders, highlighting his batting and bowling. He said India start as favourites against Pakistan but must be cautious on Sri Lanka's slow, spinner-friendly pitches.
"The India has been performing in the ICC tournaments. Hardik Pandya is my all-time favourite. He is one of the best all-rounders in the T20 format. The way he's batting and the way he's performing with the ball, he is doing brilliantly. It will be fun to watch if he performs against Pakistan. They are playing in Sri Lanka; the wicket is slow, and spinners will dominate. While India start as favourites, they will have to be careful," Nayan Mongia told ANI.
Both India and Pakistan have played two matches each in the tournament so far. Both have registered victories in those games. While India will enter the contest on the back of wins against the United States of America and Namibia, Pakistan has defeated the Netherlands and the USA.
While the Suryakumar Yadav-led India are placed on top of Group A standings with four points and the Net Run Rate (NRR) of +3.050, Pakistan are placed second with four points, too, and an NRR of +0.932.
Notably, the highly anticipated clash at Colombo's R Premadasa Stadium may be affected by rain. According to Sri Lanka's Department of Meteorology, Colombo, where the India-Pakistan World Cup match is scheduled to take place, is likely to experience showers or thundershowers after 2:00 PM local time.
The India vs Pakistan T20 World Cup match is set to start at 7:00 PM local time, with the toss scheduled at 6:30 PM.
Colombo is expected to reach a high of 34°C and a low of 24°C, with relative humidity ranging from 85% to 50%. A weather advisory from the Department of Meteorology, Sri Lanka, for February 15 also reads "Misty conditions can be expected at some places in Western, Sabaragamuwa and Central provinces and in Galle and Matara districts during the early hours of the morning." (ANI)