Well-oiled Pakistan wary of buoyant Sri Lanka in tri-series final
Sri Lanka had a disastrous start to the tri-series, but are peaking at the right time
Danyal Rasool
28-Nov-2025 • 4 hrs ago
Sri Lanka recorded a thrilling win against Pakistan on Thursday • PCB
Big picture: Can Sri Lanka end the tour on a high?
Sri Lanka were winless in the three-match ODI series against Pakistan, and appeared on the brink of early elimination with a thrashing at Zimbabwe's hands midway through the tri-series. But they roared back in their final two group games, first dispatching Zimbabwe by nine wickets before edging Pakistan out in Thursday's thriller. They are, incredibly, just a repeat performance away from getting their hands on a trophy that will ensure they convert a possible debacle of a tour into an unmitigated success.
Pakistan will be wary of Sri Lanka peaking at the right time, but also assured they are favourites against an opposition they have had plenty of experience besting this month. It required a near-flawless performance from Sri Lanka to squeeze a narrow win on a clear off-day for the home side, whose bowling and top-order batting were well off the mark. In their current form, Pakistan will be aware that even a modest improvement on those two facets should be enough to see off their home season with more silverware in the bag.
It is, for Pakistan, the near-culmination of a season where they have played an inordinate amount of T20 cricket in a bid to be prepared for the 2026 T20 World Cup in Sri Lanka. In the six months between the end of the PSL 2025 and now, Pakistan have played 28 T20Is against nine different teams, with a better than 2:1 ratio of wins and losses. The strength - or lack thereof - of some of those teams remains a lingering question mark, but victory in their 29th game on Saturday should have them feeling they have largely controlled the one thing they could in this period - results.
For Sri Lanka, co-hosts of next year's T20 World Cup, this is an opportunity to conclude a difficult second half of the year - home series loss to Bangladesh, two defeats in four against Zimbabwe, and a bottom-place finish at the Asia Cup Super Fours - with some success.
Form guide
Pakistan: LWWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Sri Lanka: WWLLL
Sri Lanka: WWLLL
In the spotlight: Mohammad Nawaz and Dushmantha Chameera
Mohammad Nawaz has contributed with either bat or ball in every game this tri-series, and was on the cusp of knocking Sri Lanka out of the tournament altogether in a late charge during Pakistan's run chase on Thursday. His tournament batting strike-rate of 162.50 is the highest, while his contributions with the ball, too, are second to none - the joint-top wicket-taker (7) in the tournament while his economy rate of 6.07 is the best (min. five overs). As an allrounder, Nawaz has become an integral member of the T20I side over the past few months, and one more performance will drive the point home.
It is invariably difficult to look past Dushmantha Chameera after one of the T20I bowling performances of the year kept his team alive in this series. Four wickets for 20, including three in two overs in the powerplay, combined with a yorker masterclass in the 20th over that kept Pakistan to just three runs, demonstrated just how high his ceiling is. It is a level he has found it difficult to sustain consistently, but the final comes just as his confidence is at a zenith.
Team news: No changes expected for Sri Lanka
Pakistan have chopped and changed their bowlers through the tournament. Expect Naseem Shah and Abrar Ahmed to return for the biggest game.
Pakistan: 1 Sahibzada Farhan, 2 Saim Ayub, 3 Babar Azam, 4 Salman Ali Agha (capt), 5 Fakhar Zaman, 6 Usman Khan (wk), 7 Mohammad Nawaz, 8 Faheem Ashraf, 9 Mohammad Wasim, 10 Salman Mirza, 11 Abrar Ahmed
Sri Lanka have kept the same side for their last two games, and there is unlikely to be a reason to change a winning formula.
Sri Lanka: 1 Pathum Nissanka, 2 Kusal Mendis (wk), 3 Kamil Mishara, 4 Kusal Perera, 5 Janith Liyanage, 6 Dasun Shanaka (capt), 7 Pavan Ratnayake, 8 Wanindu Hasaranga, 9 Dushmantha Chameera, 10 Maheesh Theekshana, 11 Eshan Malinga
Pitch and conditions: Cold and dry in Rawalpindi
There is little change to the weather in Rawalpindi, which has been cold and dry for the last month. Expect a touch of dew as the second innings kicks in, meaning sides will almost certainly opt to field.
Stats and trivia
- Fakhar Zaman's T20I record in finals is generally impressive: a strike rate of nearly 152 at 41. However, in the only T20I final he has played against Sri Lanka - at the 2022 Asia Cup - he was dismissed for a golden duck
- The 2022 Asia Cup remains Sri Lanka's last T20I tournament win. In five such finals, they have won three - including the 2014 T20I World Cup final - and lost two
Danyal Rasool is ESPNcricinfo's Pakistan correspondent. @Danny61000