The hosts defeated Sri Lanka by six wickets in the final of the tri-nation series.
Sri Lanka’s batting collapsed under the brilliant bowling of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Mohammad Nawaz. Thanks to a lone battle from Kamil Mishara, they barely managed to cross the 100-run mark. Chasing a small target, Pakistan cruised to the tri-series title.**
In Saturday’s final at Rawalpindi, the hosts won by six wickets. After bowling out Sri Lanka for 114, Pakistan reached the target with eight balls to spare.
Batting first after losing the toss, only three Sri Lankan batters reached double figures. Mishara was the only one to cross 15. He struck 4 sixes and 2 fours on his way to 59 off 47 balls.
Afridi and the left-arm spinner Nawaz, who triggered the collapse, picked up three wickets each. Nawaz claimed both the Player of the Match and Player of the Series awards. Leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed added two wickets of his own.
Afridi delivered the first blow in the third over of the match. After being hit for a six, he uprooted Pathum Nissanka’s stumps the very next ball.
Sri Lanka recovered briefly with a partnership between Kusal Mendis and Mishara. Mishara kept the scoreboard moving with aggressive strokeplay while Mendis played the supporting role. In their 64-run stand, Mendis contributed only 14.
Nawaz broke the partnership by removing Mendis, and from there Sri Lanka’s innings fell apart like a house of cards. From 84 for 1, they were bowled out for 114. Their last nine wickets fell for just 30 runs.
In the chase, Sahibzada Farhan and Saim Ayub safely navigated the powerplay, though the runs came slowly at just 32. The 46-run opening stand ended when Eshan Malinga bowled Farhan in the eighth over.
A few overs later, Wanindu Hasaranga trapped Saim leg-before. Captain Salman Ali Agha and Fakhar Zaman also fell before finishing the job, both dismissed by spinner Pavan Rathnayake.
Veteran batter Babar Azam guided the team home with an unbeaten 37 off 34, hitting 1 six and 2 fours.
Score summary
- Sri Lanka: 114 all out in 19.1 overs
(Nissanka 11, Mishara 59, Mendis 14, Rathnayake 8, Perera 1, Shanaka 2, Liyanage 0, Hasaranga 5, Chameera 0, Theekshana 1, Malinga 0*; Afridi 3-0-18-3, Salman 3.1-0-25-1, Faheem 1-0-11-0, Abrar 4-0-18-2, Saim 4-0-17-1, Nawaz 4-0-17-3) - Pakistan: 118/4 in 18.4 overs
(Sahibzada 23, Saim 36, Babar 37*, Salman Agha 14, Fakhar 3, Usman 3*; Theekshana 4-0-22-0, Chameera 3.4-0-21-0, Shanaka 1-0-7-0, Malinga 3-0-16-1, Hasaranga 4-0-31-1, Mishara 1-0-10-0, Rathnayake 2-0-11-2)
Result: Pakistan won by 6 wickets
Player of the Match: Mohammad Nawaz
Player of the Series: Mohammad Nawaz
