Pakistan and Sri Lanka will meet in the final of the ODI tri-series Pakistan is hosting against Sri Lanka and England, at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on October 31, after Dilshan Madushanka's career-best 5 for 34 bowled out the hosts for just 110 on October 27, a result that also eliminated England from title contention.
Sri Lanka chased down Pakistan's total in 18.1 overs for an eight-wicket win, with Kamindu Mendis finishing unbeaten on 62 off 60 balls to seal the chase. The result ended Pakistan's unbeaten run through the group stage and, combined with the standings elsewhere in the competition, confirmed Sri Lanka's place in the final while putting England out of contention regardless of the outcome of their own remaining group match.
Pakistan finished the group phase with three wins from four matches — beating Sri Lanka by 37 runs in the tournament opener and England twice, including by 87 runs and by one wicket — before the Madushanka-inspired loss to Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka finished second with two wins from four, having also beaten England by two wickets earlier in the competition. England finished third on one win from four, a tally that could not improve enough to overtake either finalist.
England's final group match, a dead rubber against Sri Lanka on October 29 with the final already decided, still produced a notable individual innings: Ben Duckett made 167 as England posted 386 for 5, before winning by 55 runs as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 331 in reply — a result with no bearing on the final itself.
Pakistan go into Saturday's final on home soil looking to respond immediately to their only defeat of the tournament, against the side that beat them. Sri Lanka's batting, led by Kamindu Mendis's unbeaten chase-sealing knock and backed by Madushanka's form with the ball, gives them momentum heading into Lahore, even as the lone group-stage result between the two finalists sits in their favour.
Of the two matches Pakistan and Sri Lanka played each other in the group stage, each side won one — Pakistan's 37-run win in the tournament opener and Sri Lanka's eight-wicket response in the second meeting — meaning the final arrives level on head-to-head results between the two sides despite Pakistan's superior overall points tally. That split record, combined with home conditions in Lahore that have favoured both bat and ball at different points in the tournament, leaves genuinely little separating the two finalists on paper.
England's elimination is still a reminder of how tightly contested the group stage was for the final spot: Sri Lanka needed the win over Pakistan specifically to move above England on points, rather than arriving at the final through any more comfortable qualification path. Saturday's winner will take the tri-series title on the strength of that single group-stage head-to-head between the two finalists.
Dilshan Madushanka's career-best figures make him the standout bowling pick from Sri Lanka's attack for the final, while Kamindu Mendis's unbeaten chase adds a reliable middle-order option from the same side. Pakistan's top order, which has produced wins by both large and narrow margins across the group stage, remains the safer fantasy pick on home soil despite the group-stage loss to Saturday's opponents.
AI-powered previews for the Lahore final are available on SportGod's predictions page, with fantasy squad tools on SportGod's games page and more tournament coverage on SportGod's blog.
Scores, bowling figures, and group-stage standings in this article are verified against same-day and freshly re-checked reporting as of October 30, 2026; the final had not yet been played at the time of writing.
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