 "What happens to Pakistan if England or New Zealand win their T20 World Cup match")
Pakistan cricketers will be closely following the England vs New Zealand match as their possible qualification to the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup 2026 is directly linked with the match that will take place at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Friday (27 February).
T20 World Cup 2026: News | Schedule | Results | Points Table
England have already qualified from the Super 8 Group 2, while New Zealand and Pakistan are still in contention. New Zealand have an edge over Pakistan with three points from two matches and a net run rate of +3.050, while the Men in Green have an NRR of -0.461 and just one point from two games.
Super 8 Group 2 points table
What happens if New Zealand win vs England?
More than NRR, the major worry for Pakistan is that New Zealand will qualify for the semi-finals if they beat England. To stay alive in the T20 World Cup 2026, Pakistan first need England to beat New Zealand in their final Super 8 game. This way, Pakistan will have a chance to climb to three points, the same as Black Caps, with a victory over Sri Lanka on Saturday.
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Pakistan will also need to secure a big margin win on Sri Lanka to leapfrog New Zealand’s NRR. But that’s secondary.
If Black Caps beat England, they will qualify for the semi-finals as the group leader with five points from three matches. And despite a win over Sri Lanka, Pakistan will finish behind New Zealand and England.
What happens if New Zealand lose to England?
In case New Zealand suffer a defeat, then Pakistan will have a chance to finish in second spot and qualify for the semi-finals along with England. But for that to happen, Pakistan need New Zealand to lose by around 20 runs against England.
Then Pakistan will have to beat Sri Lanka by a 50-run margin to have a better NRR than New Zealand.
If rain washes out the England vs New Zealand match, then Pakistan will be eliminated and the Black Caps will qualify.
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