5 min readUpdated: Feb 28, 2026 11:19 PM IST Many times on Saturday night, hope flickered for Pakistan. It was burning bright when Sahibzada Farhan and Fakhar Zaman, through their record 176-run opening stand, powered them to 212/8, setting the stage for a dramatic chase. If Pakistan restricted a struggling Sri Lanka to 147 or below, a place in the semi-finals was theirs. Every time Abrar Ahmed landed blows, Pakistan remained on the edge of their seats, before Pavan Rathnayake and Dasun Shanaka gave New Zealand a lifeline while going down. Sri Lanka, already out of the T20 World Cup, took Pakistan with them — which means the knockouts will now be held entirely in India. For Pakistan, this marks another ICC event where they have failed to make the knockouts. With Sri Lanka deciding to bowl first, everything came down to whether Pakistan’s attack could close out the game in batting-friendly conditions. Having played all their fixtures so far on slow, spin-friendly surfaces, Pakistan got a belter for a match where they had to …