Battle between evenly matched sides

Pakistan and Sri Lanka have never played each other in the finals of a major ODI tournament (involving five or more teams). Of the 25 such tournaments they have played in together, this Asia Cup is the first time that both the teams are in the final.

It has been nearly 15 years since Pakistan have progressed to the final of an ODI tournament involving five or more teams. The last such game for Pakistan was the title match of the 1999 World Cup when they lost to Australia. They have played in seven such finals and have emerged as the winners in five of these.

Sri Lanka have played six such matches and have won three of them, not including the 2002 Champions Trophy, which was shared between them and India after the finals were rained-off. Unlike Pakistan, they have had a more recent experience of playing in the finals of a major tournament, having played India in the 2011 World Cup.

Including the last Asia Cup, in the last five years, Pakistan have made it to the finals of any ODI tournament only twice, both these instance having come in Mirpur. They have however, made the best of these two opportunities by winning on both occasions. The fact that Pakistan haven't made it too often to the finals of an ODI series in the recent past has meant that half their current squad hasn't played in such matches before. Shahid Afridi - who has won them their last two games - has appeared in 31 ODI finals for Pakistan and is their most experienced batsman. Afridi - whose ODI career average is 23.44 - is their top scorer in such matches, having scored 621 runs at 20.70. Mohammad Hafeez is the only other Pakistan batsman to have played in at least five finals. His batting average in these matches, however, can do with some improvement: he has scored 61 runs at 12.20.

Afridi leads the bowling list too, with 29 wickets at 31.55 in the 31 finals that he has bowled in. Umar Gul's six wickets are the next highest in the list. Pakistan's leading bowler Saeed Ajmal has played in only one final - in the last Asia Cup against Bangladesh - in which his returns were 2 for 40 from ten overs.

Sri Lanka have two seasoned campaigners, in Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara, who have scored 1000-plus runs in such games. Jayawardene has made 1028 runs including one century and nine fifties in 31 innings. He scores at an average of 36.71 in finals, which is better than his career average of 33.15. Sangakkara too, has performed well in these crunch games. In 26 innings Sangakkara has scored 11 fifties and his 1023 runs in these matches have come at 40.92, a fraction more than his career average of 40.71.

Among bowlers from the current Sri Lanka squad, Lasith Malinga, with 14 wickets, is the leading wicket-taker in finals. However, Malinga averages almost ten runs more per wicket and gives away a run and a fraction more when bowling in such matches. Ajantha Mendis, who has taken 26 wickets at 10.42 in the Asia Cup, tends to improve his performance in the finals: his 12 wickets in these games have come at 12.58 and at an economy of 4.0.

In recent times Pakistan's batting line-up has been the more consistent one, with three of their batsmen - Misbah-ul-Haq, Mohammad Hafeez and Ahmed Shehzad - scoring 1000-plus runs at an average of 40-plus in ODIs since 2013. For Sri Lanka, Sangakkara is the only batsman to average above 40 in this period - he has scored 1585 runs at an average of 63.40.

As bowling units, the teams are more or less evenly matched with both sides boasting spinners and fast bowlers who have done well recently. The overall numbers for the teams look similar in matches since 2013. While Sri Lanka's bowlers have taken 245 wickets at 29.21 and have had an economy of 4.85, Pakistan have taken 272 wickets at 30.42 and have given away 4.70 runs an over.

The teams have met each other in the finals of the Asia Cup twice before this one, with Pakistan winning the 2000 edition and Sri Lanka winning in 1986. The last time these two teams met in any ODI final was the Paktel Cup in 2004, with Sri Lanka coming out on top on that occasion. Overall, the teams have played each other in 12 finals and have shared the honours, with each team winning on six occasions. Although Sri Lanka have had the upper hand in the Asia Cup, winning nine of the 13 matches they have played against Pakistan, the teams' recent head-to-head record points to an even match-up. Including the league game in this Asia Cup, the teams have played 12 ODIs against each other since 2012, of which six have been won by Sri Lanka and five by Pakistan.