Pakistan vs Sri Lanka: Probable playing XIs, pitch report, weather, date, time, live telecast and more

Pakistan are set to face Sri Lanka in the opening fixture of the 2026 ODI Tri-Series, with England completing the three-team lineup. With the ODI World Cup approaching in less than a year, the tournament offers all three sides an opportunity to finalise their combinations and build a settled playing XI. The teams will compete in a double round-robin format, facing each opponent twice, before the top two sides advance to the final.

Pakistan vs Sri Lanka 1st ODI: Match Date, Time and Venue

The Pakistan vs Sri Lanka ODI Tri-Series match will start at 1:30 PM IST. The toss will take place 30 minutes before the start of the match.

Pakistan vs Sri Lanka Playing 11: Probable Team Lineups


Pakistan (possible): 1 Saim Ayub, 2 Fakhar Zaman, 3 Hasan Nawaz, 4 Babar Azam, 5 Salman Ali Agha, 6 Shadab Khan, 7 Ghazi Ghouri (wk), 8 Minhas Arafat, 9 Shaheen Afridi (capt.), 10 Haris Rauf, 11 Naseem Shah

Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Lahiru Udara, 2 Avishka Fernando, 3 Kusal Mendis (capt, wk), 4 Kamindu Mendis, 5 Sahan Arachchige/Pavan Rathnayake, 6 Janith Liyanage, 7 Dasun Shanaka, Dunith Wellalage, 8 Dushmantha Chameera, 9 Eshan Malinga, 10 Maheesh Theekshana, 11 Asitha Fernando

Source: ESPN CricInfo

PAK vs SL Live Streaming in India: Where to Watch

The Pakistan vs Sri Lanka ODI Tri-Series match will be broadcast live on Sony Sports Network in India. However, an official streaming platform for the match has not yet been confirmed for Indian viewers.

PAK vs SL: Weather and Pitch report

The Rawalpindi surface is expected to favour batters, with short boundaries likely to make run-scoring easier. The weather forecast is also favourable, with temperatures expected to remain in the low to mid-20s, according to ESPN CricInfo.

Pakistan vs Sri Lanka: Key Players to Watch

Pakistan has never won a home ODI tournament involving more than two teams since it first hosted Australia and South Africa in a tri-series in 1994.

But captain Shaheen Afridi was hopeful that this time the team can win a trophy with the likes of star batter Babar Azam scoring big on wickets similar to the ones expected for next year’s World Cup.

“Babar is a backbone of our team,” Afridi said. “His presence is very good for the team, and we learn a lot from him.”

Babar has scored just one ODI century over the last three years, although his career average of 53.43 is still impressive with 6,626 runs, including 20 centuries.

The star batter turned to four-day domestic cricket after England swept Pakistan 3-0 in the test series, but returned with the scores of 12, 4, 21 and 21 in four innings.

Pakistan defeated Sri Lanka 2-1 in the preceding T20 series under new captain Sahibzada Farhan, who is not part of the ODI squad. Afridi, Babar, Salman Ali Agha and Haris Rauf were also ignored for the T20s, but were included in the tri-series.

Sri Lanka suffered another injury blow when opening batter Pathum Nissanka was ruled out because of a hamstring injury. Lahiru Udara replaced him.

Spinner Wanindu Hasaranga will miss out because of an injury and Charith Asalanka was not considered after a subpar performance during the England tour.

Sri Lanka has recalled all-rounder Dasun Shanaka, who hasn’t played 50-over format since early 2024 while Avishka Fernando was drafted in place of Asalanka. Fernando hasn’t played an ODI since early 2025 but forced his way back into the national team after scoring two centuries in the recent domestic cricket.