Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], February 10 (ANI): Former India captain Sourav Ganguly expressed his excitement for India's much-anticipated fixture against arch-rivals Pakistan scheduled for February 15 in Colombo, and also shared the names of his favourite players from the Indian team.

Reacting on India's Group A match against Pakistan, Ganguly said, 'It will be a big World Cup match. The match is on 15th February, it is not going to be easy for Pakistan to defeat India. India is a very good team.'

The former BCCI President's comments came after the Government of Pakistan, on Monday, directed their national cricket team to take the field on February 15, for their scheduled fixture against the defending champions, India, in the ongoing ICC Men's T20 World Cup.

The decision came after Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi, according to a statement by the Pakistan Government, briefed Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on the outcomes of high-level talks between the PCB, the International Cricket Council (ICC), and the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB).

Notably, Pakistan had previously decided to boycott their group-stage World Cup match against arch-rivals India in support of Bangladesh, who were expelled from the tournament after the ICC rejected their request to shift match venues outside India over 'security concerns'.

Pakistan's Prime Minister also spoke with Sri Lanka's President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to discuss the country's support during 'challenging times.' Following discussions with the ICC and other countries, Pakistan's government has directed its cricket team to play the T20 World Cup match against India.

After ICC held a meeting with the PCB and the BCB at Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium on Sunday to discuss Pakistan's decision to boycott the T20 World Cup 2026 match with India in Colombo, BCB president Aminul Islam Bulbul on Monday also urged Pakistan to play their February 15 ICC Men's T20 World Cup clash against India.

Speaking to ANI in Kolkata, Ganguly also shared his thoughts on the blazing start of the T20 World Cup 2026. 'The tournament has started really well. So far, it doesn't look that any team is out of place be it Netherlands, Scotland or Nepal. In the Indian team, Abhishek Sharma, Bumrah, Surya, and Ishan Kishan are my favourites,' he said.

In their first Group A fixture, Indian team defeated USA by 29 runs where the skipper Suryakumar Yadav played a match-winning knock of unbeaten 84 runs off just 49 balls.

Now, the Men in Blue are in Delhi for their next clash against Namibia on February 12. They are then scheduled to play the much-anticipated World Cup match against Pakistan in Colombo on February 15, before travelling to Ahmedabad for their final group-stage clash against the Netherlands on February 18.

Team India's T20 World Cup 2026 squad: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Rinku Singh. (ANI)