DAMBULLA: Sri Lanka registered a hard-fought 14-run win over Pakistan in the third T20 in rain-hit Dambulla on Sunday, easing their batting jitters and leveling the three-match series 1-1.
The series, a warm-up for the T20 World Cup with Pakistan set to play all their matches in Sri Lanka due to political tensions with nuclear-armed neighbor India, saw the visitors win the first match by six wickets before rain washed out the second match.
“We were a little worried about our batting and I’m glad we addressed that today,” said Wanindu Hasaranga, who won Player of the Match and Player of the Series honors.
“The bowlers also did a good job. The ball was wet and it was not easy. We tried to bowl wide and slow and asked them to take risks.” Hasaranga took four wickets in the match and thus completed 150 wickets in the T20Is.
In a contest reduced to 12 overs per team, Sri Lanka battled their way to a competitive score of 160 before stifling Pakistan to 146-8.
After being bowled out in 20 overs in the first match of the series, Sri Lanka needed a statement with the bat and duly ticked every box after getting on the board.
The top order laid the platform and the middle order applied the finishing touches.
Wicketkeeper Kusal Mendis made hay under the Power Play, bowling 30 off 16 balls while Dhananjaya de Silva (22 off 15) and Charith Asalanka (21 off 13) kept the scoreboard ticking.
Skipper Dasun Shanaka then took the momentum decisively, clubbing 34 off just nine deliveries, studded with five towering sixes.
The sixth-wicket stand between Shanaka and Janith Liyanage produced 52 runs in just 15 balls and was a turning point, swinging the game firmly towards Sri Lanka.
Pakistan responded by fighting back, reaching 50 in just 19 balls, with captain Salman Ali Agha hammering 45 off 12 balls, including five fours and three sixes.
But once the field expanded, Sri Lanka tightened the screws, applied the choke and forced the asking rate to skyrocket.
“It was a good game of cricket,” Salman said. “We conceded too many runs but our batting effort was good. Unfortunately, we fell short. We know we are going to play all our World Cup matches in Sri Lanka and it is important that we play in similar conditions,” he added.
Dashboard
SRI LANKA:
P. Nissanka c Faheem b Naseem 0
K. Mishara v Nafay b Wasim 20
K. Mendis v Usman b Wasim 30
D. de Silva v Sahibzada b Nawaz 22
C. Asalanka v Nawaz b Faheem 21
D. Shanaka v Saim b Wasim 34
J. Liyanage not absent 22
W. Hasaranga not absent 1
ADDITIONAL (B-1, LB-2, W-7) 10
TOTAL (for six wickets, 12 overs) 160
FALL OF Wickets: 1-10 (Nissanka), 2-22 (Mishara), 3-54 (de Silva), 4-100 (Mendis), 5-102 (Asalanka), 6-154 (Shanaka)
DID NOT BEAT: M. Theekshana, E. Malinga, M. Pathirana
BOWLING: Naseem 3-0-35-1 (3s), Wasim 3-0-54-3 (2s), Abrar 2-0-22-0 (1s), Shadab 2-0-19-0, Nawaz 1-0-8-1, Faheem 1-0-19-1
PAKISTAN:
Sahibzada Farhan b Malinga 9
Saim Ayub c Malinga b Hasaranga 6
Salman Ali Agha v Malinga b Pathirana 45
Usman Khan v Nissanka b Hasaranga 1
Mohammad Nawaz b Pathirana 28
Khawaja Nafay v de Silva b Hasaranga 26
Shadab Khan v Malinga b Hasaranga 6
Faheem Ashraf exhausted (Mendis) 9
Mohammad Wasim not absent 7
Naseem Shah not absent 1
ADDITIONAL (LB-1, W-7) 8
TOTAL (for eight wickets, 12 overs) 146
FALL OF Wickets: 1-9 (Sahibzada), 2-60 (Salman), 3-62 (Saim), 4-67 (Usman), 5-116 (Nafay), 6-123 (Shadab), 7-133 (Nawaz), 8-141 (Faheem)
DID NOT DEFEAT: Abrar Ahmed
BOWLING: Theekshana 2-0-27-0, Malinga 2-0-27-1 (5w), Pathirana 3-0-34-2 (1w), Hasaranga 3-0-35-4 (1w), de Silva 2-0-22-0
RESULT: Sri Lanka wins by 14 runs Sri Lanka.
Published in Dawn, January 12, 2026
