Salman Agha plays down Colombo comfort ahead of India clash

Pakistan captain Salman Agha dismissed the notion that playing all their World Cup matches in Colombo provides a significant advantage, stating the winner against India will be decided purely by who plays better cricket.

In this ICC Men's T20 World Cup, Pakistan are stationed solely in Sri Lanka while most other teams play across both host countries. Agha believes the benefit is limited.

"We are based here and play all matches in Colombo, but I don't know how it's an advantage," Agha said. "We are used to the climate, that's all the advantage there is. You have to play good cricket for all 40 overs, else you can't win."

Pakistan's preparation has involved training across three Colombo venues: R. Premadasa Stadium, the Singhalese Sports Club (SSC), and the Colombo Cricket Club (CCC) Ground. Their two tournament matches so far were at the SSC.

For this specific match, Pakistan have had two practice sessions at the R. Premadasa Stadium, while India had only one. This has allowed Pakistan more time to assess the surface.

"Being in Sri Lanka, we know the climate and how the pitch will behave," Agha said. "We are well prepared with that. Hopefully it helps us."

The R. Premadasa Stadium has seen 20 wickets fall to spin and 21 to pace in this tournament. Scoring against spin has been difficult with the long boundaries. Pakistan have fielded up to five spin options, but Agha expects fast bowlers to contribute.

"It's possible that spinners dominate here, but I feel fast bowlers will have a role to play," he said. "Fast bowling is such a skill that on any surface you can't write it off."

Agha acknowledged the weight of leading Pakistan in such a high-profile match.

"I haven't lost sleep, but I have a few extra grays in my beard," Agha said with a smile. "Yeah, it's an added responsibility when you are captain of your side and representing 250-260 million people."

India hold a 7-1 lead over Pakistan in T20 World Cups and have won their last eight completed matches across formats.

"We don't have a good record in the World Cups," Agha acknowledged, "but whenever you play a new match, you have to play good cricket to win. You can't do anything with history. We have learned from it and we will try to put in a good performance tomorrow."