India–Pakistan cricket rivalry

Across all formats, India and Pakistan have played each other 213 times, with Pakistan winning 88 matches and India winning 82. In Tests and ODIs, Pakistan has won more matches than India, while in T20Is, India has won more matches than Pakistan. Across all ICC World Cups, the two teams have faced each other 17 times, with India winning 16 matches and Pakistan winning 1 match. Both teams have won the ICC Cricket World Cup, the ICC T20 World Cup, and the ICC Champions Trophy. In total, India has won 8 ICC titles, while Pakistan has won 3.

The tense relations between the two nations, resulting from bitter diplomatic relations and conflict that originated during the Partition of British India into India and Pakistan in 1947, the Indo-Pakistani Wars, Kashmir conflict, and Pakistani state sponsored terrorism laid the foundations for the emergence of a fierce sporting rivalry between the two nations who had shared a common cricketing heritage.

The two teams first played in 1952, when Pakistan toured India. Since then numerous Test series and, later, One Day International (ODI) series have been played, although a number of planned tours by both teams have been cancelled or aborted due to political factors. No cricket was played between the two countries from 1962 to 1977 due to two major wars in 1965 and 1971, and the 1999 Kargil War and the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks also interrupted cricketing ties between the two nations.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the growth of large expatriate populations from both countries across the world led to neutral venues to host bilateral and multilateral ODI series featuring the two teams. In addition, there has always been high demand for tickets for the matches between the two in global ICC competitions, with over 800,000 ticket applications made for their meeting in the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup; the television transmission of the match was watched by 273 million viewers.

Players from both teams routinely face extreme pressure to win and are threatened by extreme reactions in defeat. Extreme fan reactions to defeats in key matches have been recorded, with a limited degree of hooliganism. At the same time, India–Pakistan matches have also offered opportunities for cricket diplomacy as a means to improve relations between the two countries, allowing heads of state and cricket followers from either country to travel to the other to watch the matches.

The last full bilateral tour between the teams was Pakistan's tour of India in 2007, where both Test and ODI series were played. However, following the 2008 terror attacks in Mumbai, orchestrated by Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba, India suspended the planned 2009 series and all future engagements with Pakistan. The attack eventually led to detrimental consequences for both nations, in diplomacy and cricket. Since then, the two teams have only met in ICC and ACC tournaments, with India winning most of their meetings. In 2025, following their Asia Cup match, Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav stated that the India–Pakistan matchup was "not a rivalry anymore". Pakistan's last victory against India came in 2022 Asia Cup.

History

The Partition of British India in 1947 that led to the creation of independent Indian and Pakistani states was characterised by bloody conflict between ethnic groups that left one million people dead and led to the mass-migration of an estimated ten million people between either nation. The legacy of Partition and subsequent territorial disputes has contributed to intense rivalries in field hockey, association football, and especially cricket, which was introduced during British colonial rule and is the most popular sport in both countries.

Pakistan became a member of the Imperial Cricket Conference (now the International Cricket Council) in 1948, becoming a Full Member in July 1952. Their tour of India later the same year saw the team play their first Test matches. They lost the first Test in Delhi to India, but won the second Test in Lucknow, which led to an angry reaction from the home crowd against the Indian players. India clinched the Test series after winning the third Test in Bombay, but the intense pressure affected the players of both teams to the point that they pursued mainly defensive tactics that led to drawn matches and whole series without a victory. When India toured Pakistan in 1955, thousands of Indian fans were granted visas to go to the Pakistani city of Lahore to watch the Test match, but both the 1955 series and Pakistan's tour of India in 1961 ended in drawn series, with neither team being able to win a single Test match. Complaints about the fairness of umpires became routine.

The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 and subsequent War of 1971 put a hold on matches between the two teams that lasted till 1978, when India toured Pakistan and cricket between the two countries resumed for a brief period. In the post-1971 period, politics became a direct factor in the holding of cricketing events. India has suspended cricketing ties with Pakistan several times following terrorist attacks or other hostilities. The resumption of cricketing ties in 1978 came with the emergence of heads of government in both India and Pakistan who were not directly connected with the 1971 war and coincided with their formal initiatives to normalise bilateral relations.

In the late 1980s and for most of the 1990s, India and Pakistan played each other only at neutral venues such as Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates and in the Canadian city of Toronto, where large audiences of expatriates regularly watched matches between the teams. The series between the teams in Canada in the 1990s and early 2000s were officially known as the "Friendship Cup". Sharjah, even though a neutral venue, was considered as the "back yard of Pakistan" given the close proximity and the massive support the team generated.

The rise of multinational competitions, such as the ICC Cricket World Cup, ICC T20 World Cup, ICC Champions Trophy, and the Asia Cup led to more regular, albeit briefer, contests between the two teams.

In 1999, immediately following Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's historic visit to Pakistan, the Pakistani team toured India for a series of Test matches and One Day Internationals. The 2 match test series was drawn 1-1, and during the 2nd innings of second test, Anil Kumble took all 10 wickets, becoming the first Indian bowler to achieve the feat. The Kargil War later in the year caused tensions between the countries and cricket was again suspended.

21st century

Vajpayee's peace initiative of 2003 led to India touring Pakistan after a gap of almost 15 years. During the 2004 tour to Pakistan, Virender Sehwag scored his first triple century in the first Test, scoring 309 from 375 balls, and was awarded player of the match. The 2004 series was won by India, 2–1 in Test matches and 3–2 in ODI matches. Subsequent exchange tours were held from March to April 2005 in India, January to February 2006 in Pakistan, and November to December 2007 in India. The 2005 Test series ended in a 1–1 draw, while the ODI series was won by Pakistan 4–2. The 2006 Test series was won by Pakistan 1–0, with the first 2 Test matches ending in a draw, while India won the ODI series 4–1. The 2007 series was won by India in both Test and ODI formats, by margins of 1–0 and 3–2, respectively. The 2007 series would remain as the last full bilateral series played between India and Pakistan.

The 2008 Mumbai terror attacks on 26–29 November 2008 by the Pakistan-based terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba dealt a major blow to the diplomatic and cricketing ties between India and Pakistan. It led to the suspension of India's planned tour of Pakistan in 2009 and all future engagements in Pakistan. Since then, India has refused to play any bilateral series against Pakistan, meeting only at Asian and ICC events. Furthermore, Pakistani players were excluded from the Indian Premier League, following which their contracts were terminated, with the inaugural season being the only one where they participated.

The 2009 attack on the Sri Lanka national cricket team in Lahore led to the suspension of international tours of Pakistan, and no Test series were played in the country for a decade. Pakistan was also removed as a co-host for the 2011 Cricket World Cup which had been due to be played across the Indian subcontinent. India and Pakistan qualified for the first semi-final of the tournament and the Indian government invited the Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani to watch the match along with his Indian counterpart, Manmohan Singh.

Bilateral ties finally resumed when the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) invited the Pakistan national team to tour India for three ODIs and two T20Is in December 2012. In June 2014, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced that an agreement to play six bilateral series across eight years between the two teams had reached. After lengthy negotiations involving offers and counter-offers on the venues and scheduling of the first of these series in December 2015, the boards were unable to reach an agreement. In May 2017, the BCCI accounted that it would need approval from the Indian government before a bilateral series could go ahead. There was no further progress, despite members of both boards meeting in Dubai to discuss the matter.

In October 2021, during the T20 World Cup, the teams played their 200th international match against each other. Pakistan won the fixture by ten wickets, their first in 13 attempts against India in World Cup tournaments of either format.

In October 2021, following a meeting with the ACC, Ramiz Raja confirmed that Pakistan would host the Asia Cup in 2023, with Sri Lanka hosting the 2022 edition. In October 2022, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary and ACC President Jay Shah announced that India would not travel to Pakistan, citing security concerns, and that the Asia Cup 2023 would take place in a neutral venue. In December 2022, the then PCB chairman Ramiz Raja said that Pakistan might consider pulling out of the tournament if their hosting rights were withdrawn because of India's unwillingness to travel to Pakistan. The PCB had threatened to boycott the 2023 Cricket World Cup in India after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) refused to send a team to the Asia Cup. This issue was later resolved, and Pakistan eventually participated in the 2023 Cricket World Cup in India.

In January 2023, ACC confirmed the teams and groups of the Asia Cup, with both India and Pakistan taking part. In March 2023, it was proposed that Pakistan remain as hosts and that all India matches - including at least two India-Pakistan contests - would be played at a neutral venue yet to be confirmed. The hybrid model proposed by Pakistan was rejected by Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. In response, PCB Chairman Najam Sethi proposed two options. The first option was that India play all their matches at a neutral venue with Pakistan hosting the rest of the teams. The second option was that four matches in the group stage take place in Pakistan whereas the second phase, in which matches played by the Indian team followed by the next stage matches including the final, be played at a neutral venue. Sri Lanka and Bangladesh agreed to the second option. On 15 June 2023, the Asian Cricket Council announced that the tournament would be organized in a hybrid model with four matches being held in Pakistan, and the remaining nine in Sri Lanka.

India and Pakistan met twice in the 2023 Asia Cup. Though the first match in the Group stage yielded a no result due to rain, India defeated Pakistan by an enormous margin in the Super Four clash between the 2 teams, scoring 356 for the loss of only 2 wickets. India in this match not only set their highest-ever score in ODI cricket against Pakistan, but also defeated them with the highest ever run margin of 228 runs, bundling Pakistan out for 128. India would eventually go on to win this Asia Cup, while Pakistan would be knocked out in the super-fours round. India won the match against Pakistan at the 2024 Men's T20 World Cup by 6 runs, which was also the first ICC tournament to be held in United States of America. Then in 2025, India again defeated Pakistan; this time in the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy by 6 wickets with Virat Kohli scoring his 51st century in ODI cricket.

The 2025 Asia Cup was a heavily tense situation for both teams, mostly due to the Pahalgam terror attack by Pakistan-based terror group The Resistance Front and the military conflict in the aftermath of the attack. Before the tournament, there were calls for boycott, but eventually the Government of India gave a go-ahead. During the group stage, the Indian team led by Suryakumar Yadav refused to shake hands after defeating Pakistan, with Yadav dedicating the victory to the victims of Pahalgam attack and Indian Army. In the super four stage, Pakistani cricketers Haris Rauf and Sahibzada Farhan made insensitive gestures in the match: while Rauf made a "jet crashing" gesture and a "6-0" finger sign, interpreted by media as a symbolic reference to Pakistan's claim of shooting down six Indian aircraft during Operation Sindoor, Farhan celebrated his half-century by mimicking firing a rifle with his bat. Yadav and Rauf were fined 30% of their match fees, while Farhan received a warning. Following the final, in which India defeated Pakistan again, a major controversy erupted as the Indian team refused to accept the winning trophy from ACC president Mohsin Naqvi, who also serves as Pakistan's Interior Minister and Chairman of the PCB, and this led to a delay in handing out other awards. Yadav later said the team had been "denied" the opportunity to lift the trophy and criticized the handling of the ceremony. Naqvi handed the trophy to the UAE cricket authorities when the BCCI threatened to impeach him from the ACC presidency for misconduct.

Following the men's Asia Cup victory, the BCCI asked the women's team to avoid shaking hands with the Pakistani women's team during the 2025 Women's Cricket World Cup.

During the 2026 Men's T20 World Cup, the Pakistani team was reportedly asked by their Government not to play the initial group stage match with India, citing the ICC's refusal to relocate Bangladesh's matches out of India to Sri Lanka, due to the removal of Mustafizur Rahman from the 2026 Indian Premier League. However, the ICC warned the PCB of possible sanctions for a potential boycott of the match against India, and eventually went ahead. During the coin toss, there was no handshake between the Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav and the Pakistani captain Salman Ali Agha, which was also followed after India had defeated Pakistan.