Pakistan star batter Babar Azam was dismissed for a duck in the tri-series final against Sri Lanka, extending his disappointing record in international cricket finals. The match marked Babar’s seventh appearance in an international final, but he is yet to score a half-century in any of those seven finals.
Sri Lanka set Pakistan a target of 326 runs to win the final of the tri-nation ODI series at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. After winning the toss, Pakistan elected to bowl first. Sri Lanka posted 325 for eight in their allotted 50 overs, thanks to a brilliant maiden ODI century from Kamindu Mendis, who scored 131 runs. Pavan Rathnayake also made a valuable contribution with 77 runs, while Avishka Fernando added 38.
For Pakistan, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Salman Ali Agha claimed two wickets each. Pakistan have suffered just one defeat in the tournament, which came against Sri Lanka. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka recorded three victories but lost their most recent match against England. Pakistan now need 326 runs to win the tri-nation series title.
