Pakistan finished their tour of Sri Lanka on a high note, securing a four-wicket victory in the third T20I at Dambulla. Despite having already lost the series, the visiting side delivered a disciplined performance, restricting the hosts to 113/6 before successfully chasing the target with 10 balls remaining.
Sri Lanka initially looked comfortable after being sent in to bat, reaching 44/1 by the end of the Powerplay. Captain Chamari Athapaththu led the charge with an aggressive start, including two boundaries in the first over, and built a 36-run partnership with Imesha Dulani. Although Dulani was stumped in the sixth over, Athapaththu and Sanjana Kavindi continued to push the score to 72/1 by the 11th over.
The match turned in the 12th over when Momina Riasat claimed two quick wickets, triggering a significant collapse. Sri Lanka struggled to regain momentum, losing three additional wickets over the next four overs. Pakistan’s bowlers maintained tight control during the death overs, conceding only 22 runs and allowing no boundaries in the final four overs to keep the hosts to a modest total. Riasat finished with impressive figures of 2-18.
Pakistan’s chase began aggressively, with the openers putting up 29 runs and hitting six boundaries early on. Although Kavisha Dilhari dismissed both openers within three overs, Pakistan remained steady at 44/2 after the Powerplay. Ayesha Zafar anchored the innings with a crucial 31-ball 39, finding boundaries whenever the required run rate threatened to climb. Even after falling to Athapaththu in the 17th over, Zafar had done enough to guide her team toward the win, which was finalized in the 19th over.
Brief Scores: Sri Lanka 113/6 in 20 overs (Chamari Athapaththu 34; Momina Riasat 2-18) lost to Pakistan 115/6 in 18.2 overs (Ayesha Zafar 39; Chamari Athapaththu 2-20, Kavisha Dilhari 2-24) by four wickets.
Having already conceded the series, Pakistan produced an impressive bowling display to restrict the hosts to 113 before chasing down the target with 10 balls to spare.
Asked to bat, Sri Lanka made a brisk start and reached 44/1 at the end of the Powerplay.
