Sri Lanka crush Pakistan by 8 wickets to end England's hopes; Madushanka's 5-34, Kamindu's fifty

LAHORE: Sri Lanka crushed Pakistan by eight wickets in the tri-nation series ODI at Gaddafi Stadium, a result that ended England's hopes of reaching the final. According to the available match report, Pakistan were bowled out for 110 in 25.3 overs and Sri Lanka reached 111 for two in 18.1 overs. Pakistan had already qualified with three wins. The central story was Pakistan's batting collapse: no batter reached 30, with Babar Azam top-scoring with 29 and Hasan Nawaz making 17. Fakhar Zaman, described as an out-of-form opener, fell for 5 in the fourth over. Dilshan Madushanka took a career-best 5-34, while Sahan Arachchige claimed 2-24 and Eshan Malinga dismissed Babar LBW. Shaheen Shah Afridi made 15 and took a wicket. In reply, Kamindu Mendis made 62 not out off 60 balls with eight fours and two sixes, reaching his fifth ODI fifty with a six off Shaheen, and Pavan Rathnayake finished 23 not out. Sri Lanka had 191 balls to spare. The report describes a flat Gaddafi Stadium pitch and notes Sri Lanka had chased 430 earlier in the same tournament, which suggests Pakistan's 110 was more a batting failure than a pitch problem. However, all figures are single-source and unattributed, so they should be treated as pending scorecard verification. England's elimination was not caused by this result alone: they lost two matches from winning positions, conceding a 430 chase and failing to defend 242. Pakistan's low-stakes position, having already qualified, may have affected intensity or selection, though team changes are not confirmed. Shaheen said Pakistan would return stronger in the final. Sri Lanka have momentum but a wide performance range; Pakistan remain volatile before the final; England's issues look structural in death and middle-overs bowling. Thursday's Sri Lanka-England fixture is now a dead rubber, reducing its commercial value, while a Pakistan home final remains the host board's best-case outcome. The result also carries a historical echo: the report says Pakistan's second-lowest home ODI total came at the same venue where they were dismissed for 75 by Sri Lanka in 2026.