The rivals set to meet in the tri-nation series
ThePapareNews article
The tri-nation One-Day International series featuring Sri Lanka, England and hosts Pakistan is scheduled to be played from the 18th to the 31st of this month in Rawalpindi and Lahore.
For this series, Sri Lanka have named Kusal Mendis as captain, England have named Harry Brook and Pakistan have named Shaheen Shah Afridi.
Among the three teams taking part in the series, Pakistan are currently ranked 5th in ODI cricket, with England 6th and Sri Lanka 7th.
Pakistan team
The Pakistan side, led by 26-year-old Shaheen Shah Afridi, come into this series after featuring in a series against Australia in the month of June just gone. They won that series 2-1.
The last time Sri Lanka and Pakistan met in an ODI series was during Sri Lanka's tour of Pakistan in November 2025. The hosts managed to win that three-match series 3-0.
Pakistan's head-to-head record against Sri Lanka and England
- Team · Span · Mat · Won · Lost · Draw · Tied
- England · 1974 – 2023 · 92 · 32 · 57 · 0 · 0
- Sri Lanka · 1975 – 2025 · 96 · 59 · 0 · 1 · 0
Babar Azam is undisputedly regarded as the most accomplished batter in the side. Also Pakistan's leading century-maker, he joins this series having played 143 ODIs so far, scoring 6626 runs with 20 centuries and 38 half-centuries.
Those runs include 700 scored against Sri Lanka in 15 matches, with 4 centuries and a half-century. Babar Azam has also featured in 20 matches against England, where he has impressed with 854 runs including 2 centuries and 5 half-centuries.
In addition to them, left-handed opener Fakhar Zaman, who has 3861 runs with 11 centuries and 19 half-centuries in 92 ODIs, and all-rounder Salman Agha, who has 1566 runs with 3 centuries and 9 half-centuries plus 20 wickets in 53 ODIs, are also counted among the mainstays of Pakistan's batting line-up.
The leading bowler in the side is captain Shaheen Shah Afridi. He has taken 146 wickets so far in 77 ODIs. His wicket tally includes 9 wickets against England and 4 wickets against Sri Lanka.
Alongside him, right-arm fast-medium bowler Haris Rauf, who has 107 wickets in 59 ODIs, leg-spinner Shadab Khan, who has 87 wickets in 73 ODIs, and another right-arm fast-medium bowler, Naseem Shah, who has claimed 60 wickets in 34 ODIs, can also be named among Pakistan's other potent bowling options.
Also included in this squad are Test cricketer Razaullah, who is yet to earn an ODI cap, and 19-year-old left-handed batter Saad Baig.
Pakistan ODI squad
Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Salman Ali Agha, Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wicketkeeper), Haris Rauf, Hasan Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Razaullah, Saad Baig (wicketkeeper), Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan, Sufiyan Moqim.
England team
The last series England played before this one was the series against Sri Lanka at home. They managed to win that series 2-1.
It is also notable that an England team is touring Pakistan after a gap of 21 years. The last time they toured Pakistan was in 2005. The hosts managed to win that five-match series 3-2.
However, the last time an England side and a Pakistan side faced each other was at the 2023 World Cup in India. England won that match by 93 runs.
England's head-to-head record against Sri Lanka and Pakistan
- Team · Span · Match · Won · Lost · Draw · Tied
- Sri Lanka · 1982 – 2026 · 85 · 42 · 39 · 0 · 1
- Pakistan · 1974 – 2023 · 92 · 57 · 32 · 0 · 0
The England side taking part in the series will be captained by 27-year-old right-handed middle-order batter Harry Brook. He is a player who has so far played 44 ODIs, amassing 1530 runs with 3 centuries and 8 half-centuries.
That includes 329 runs gathered in 6 matches against Sri Lanka, with a century and 2 half-centuries. His highest score recorded in international innings is the unbeaten 136 he made at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium in Colombo earlier this year, facing 66 balls and striking 11 fours and 9 sixes.
He has played against Pakistan in just one match so far.
Among the players joining him in the squad, the most dependable all-rounder is 35-year-old Joe Root. He is a player who has played 195 ODIs to date, boosting his batting tally to 7903 runs with 20 centuries and 48 half-centuries. That record stands as the highest run tally by an England batter in ODI cricket.
Having walked out as a batter in 32 innings across 35 matches against Sri Lanka, he has gathered 1502 runs with 3 centuries and 11 half-centuries. That is the highest run tally he has made against any opposition nation, and he has also maintained an average of 62.58 in those games.
He also operates as a bowler at the most crucial moments, and with 31 wickets so far he has earned trust with the ball as well.
The bowler who has earned a reputation as England's mystery man is leg-spinner Adil Rashid. He has taken 243 wickets in 164 ODIs to date. Among them, he has 22 wickets against Sri Lanka and 18 wickets against Pakistan.
Will Jacks also joins England's all-round options, while Ben Duckett as a batter and Sam Curran as a bowler have earned their trust and are part of the squad.
Along with them, 22-year-old all-rounder James Coles and 25-year-old right-arm fast-medium bowler Henry Crocombe have been added to the side as newcomers, while Test cricketer Mason Crane, who is yet to earn an ODI cap, is also included in this squad.
England ODI squad
Harry Brook (captain), Gus Atkinson, Sonny Baker, Tom Banton (wicketkeeper), James Coles, Jordan Cox (wicketkeeper), Mason Crane, Henry Crocombe, Sam Curran, Liam Dawson, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Josh Tongue.
The Sri Lanka ODI squad joining these two teams in the series
Kusal Mendis (captain and wicketkeeper), Lahiru Udara, Avishka Fernando, Pawan Rathnayake, Kamil Mishara (wicketkeeper), Kamindu Mendis, Sahan Arachchige, Dunith Wellalage, Janith Liyanage, Dasun Shanaka, Maheesh Theekshana, Sachindu Colombage, Dushmantha Chameera, Asitha Fernando, Dilshan Madushanka and Eshan Malinga.
Match schedule
October 18
- Pakistan v Sri Lanka, day/night match at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.
October 20
- Pakistan v England, day/night match at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.
October 22
- England v Sri Lanka, day/night match at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.
October 25
- Pakistan v England, day/night match at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
October 27
- Pakistan v Sri Lanka, day/night match at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
October 29
- England v Sri Lanka, day/night match at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
October 31
- The grand final (day/night) at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
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Based on ThePapare reporting