Before the first Kusal–Farhan face-off…
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The three-match T20 International series between the touring Sri Lanka side and hosts Pakistan is set to begin tomorrow (9) at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.
Kusal Mendis will once again take the field as captain of the Sri Lanka T20 side in this match, while the responsibility of leading Pakistan has been handed to Sahibzada Farhan. This is the first time either of them will wear the captain's hat against the opposition while representing their country.
Sri Lanka T20 squad
Kusal Mendis (captain), Sineth Jayawardana, Lahiru Udara (wicketkeeper), Kamil Mishara, Kamindu Mendis, Sahan Arachchige, Dasun Shanaka, Chamindu Wickramasinghe, Dunith Wellalage, Dushmantha Chameera, Eshan Malinga, Maheesh Theekshana, Nuwan Thushara, Binura Fernando, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth.
Pakistan T20 squad
Sahibzada Farhan (captain), Saim Ayub, Maaz Sadaqat, Fakhar Zaman, Khawaja Nafay (wicketkeeper), Hasan Nawaz, Abdul Samad, Shada Khan, Naseem Shah, Razaullah, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Sufiyan Moqim, Abrar Ahmed, Arafat Minhas, Muhammad Imran Randhawa,.
Ahead of this series, the two nations have met in 30 matches so far, with Pakistan winning 18 of them and Sri Lanka taking the remaining 12. The two sides meet in this match after the World Cup tournament held in Sri Lanka at the start of this year. In that match, Pakistan secured a 5-wicket win.
The two teams meet in a bilateral series for the first time since the tour held in Sri Lanka before the World Cup. That three-match series ended level at 1-1.
The road through completed bilateral series between the two nations
- Host · Matches · Series result · Year
- 1 · Sri Lanka · 1 · Pakistan won the series 1-0. · 2009
- 2 · Pakistan · 1 · Pakistan won the series 1-0. · 2011/12
- 3 · Sri Lanka · 2 · The series was drawn 1-1. · 2012
- 4 · Pakistan · 2 · The series was drawn 1-1. · 2013/14
- 5 · Sri Lanka · 2 · Pakistan won the series 2-0. · 2015
- 6 · Pakistan · 3 · Pakistan won the series 3-0. · 2017/18
- 7 · Pakistan · 3 · Sri Lanka won the series 3-0. · 2019/20
- 8 · Sri Lanka · 3 · The series was drawn 1-1. · 2025/26
- Notable landmarks in T20 Internationals between the two nations
212/8 : The record for the highest team total in an innings between the two nations belongs to Pakistan. They set that mark in Pallekele this year.
95/10 : The lowest innings total in contests between the two nations was this innings played by Pakistan in Suriyawewa in 2012.
419 : The highest aggregate of runs scored by both teams combined in a match between the two nations was recorded in the match played in Pallekele in 2026. In that match Pakistan made 212 for the loss of 8 wickets, while Sri Lanka scored 207 for the loss of 6 wickets.
64 : The largest victory by a runs margin between the two nations belongs to Sri Lanka. They achieved that feat at the Lahore stadium in 2019.
397 : Pakistan's Shoaib Malik is the leading run-scorer between the two nations. He compiled those runs in 16 matches.
The honour of the most runs by a Sri Lankan batter in these contests belongs to Tillakaratne Dilshan. He scored 323 runs in 14 matches to top the Sri Lankan list.
100 : The highest individual score in an innings between the two nations is this total made by Sahibzada Farhan at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium at the start of this year, facing 60 balls and striking 9 fours and 5 sixes.
For Sri Lanka, that record belongs to Kusal Perera. He made 84 off 59 balls with 5 fours and 4 sixes at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in 2013.
3×50+ = The honour of the most fifty-plus innings between the two nations is shared by Pakistan's Sahibzada Farhan and Shahid Afridi.
22x6s : Sri Lanka's Dasun Shanaka has struck the most sixes between the two nations.
26x4s : Pakistan's Sahibzada Farhan has struck the most fours between the two nations.
8x6s : Sri Lanka's Dasun Shanaka has hit the most sixes in an innings in matches between the two nations. He achieved that feat in the match played in Pallekele at the start of this year.
112 : Sri Lanka's Bhanuka Rajapaksa is the leading run-scorer in a series between the two nations. He achieved that feat on the Sri Lankan team's tour of Pakistan in 2019/20.
23 : The top spot on the list of leading wicket-takers compiled between the two nations so far belongs to Sri Lanka's Wanindu Hasaranga. He achieved that feat in 11 matches.
4/13 : The best bowling figures in an innings between the two nations belong to Pakistan's Umar Gul. He achieved that feat in the match played at King City in New Zealand in 2008.
8 : Sri Lanka's Wanindu Hasaranga is the bowler with the most wickets in a series between the two nations. He achieved that feat on Pakistan's tour of Sri Lanka in the 2019/20 season.
12 : Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara is the wicketkeeper with the most dismissals between the two nations.
9 : Pakistan's Babar Azam has taken the most catches between the two nations.
176 : The highest partnership for any wicket between the two nations belongs to Pakistan's Sahibzada Farhan and Fakhar Zaman. They achieved that feat in the match played in Pallekele at the start of this year.
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Based on ThePapare reporting