Mendis and Shanaka Lead Sri Lanka Past Pakistan in Third T20I

Sri Lanka avoided a series whitewash against Pakistan with an eight-wicket victory in the third T20 international in Rawalpindi on Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026. Captain Kusal Mendis struck an unbeaten 87 off 48 balls to guide the visitors to 172-2 in 17.1 overs after Pakistan had already secured the three-match series with wins in the opening two games.

Mendis recovered from scores of 1 and 9 in the previous matches to deliver the decisive innings. His performance helped Sri Lanka chase down the target with 17 balls remaining, giving the visitors a consolation victory after a difficult run of results in the format.

According to the Associated Press report published by The Star, Sri Lanka showed improvement in batting, bowling and fielding to secure the win. The result denied Pakistan a clean sweep in the series despite the hosts' dominant performances in the first two matches.

Sri Lanka had won only six of their 23 T20 internationals since the beginning of 2026, losing 16 during that period, according to ESPNcricinfo. The team had also gone without a bilateral T20I series victory since September 2025.

Before the third match, Mendis acknowledged that Sri Lanka needed to improve across all three aspects of the game to compete with Pakistan. The visitors entered the contest seeking to restore some momentum after being outplayed in the opening two encounters.

Sri Lanka won the toss for the third consecutive time on the tour and elected to bowl first. The decision came with Pakistan already holding an unassailable lead in the series, allowing the hosts to experiment with their lineup while the visitors pursued a final-match victory.

Pakistan made four changes to test their squad depth, bringing in Razaullah, Arafat Minhas, Sufyan Moqim and Abdul Samad. Naseem Shah, Abrar Ahmed, Shadab Khan and Saim Ayub were left out of the playing XI.

Captain Sahibzada Farhan led Pakistan's revised lineup as the hosts gave their middle order a more demanding opportunity. The changes came after Pakistan had wrapped up the series through convincing victories in the first two games.

Sri Lanka made one change, bringing legspinner Vijayakanth Viyaskanth into the side in place of Maheesh Theekshana. The team retained Mendis as captain and wicketkeeper, with Dasun Shanaka also included in the lineup.

Pakistan's playing XI comprised Fakhar Zaman, Sahibzada Farhan, Maaz Sadaqat, Hasan Nawaz, Abdul Samad, Khawaja Nafay, Arafat Minhas, Mohammad Imran, Razaullah, Salman Mirza and Sufyan Moqim.

Sri Lanka fielded Lahiru Udara, Sineth Jayawardena, Kusal Mendis, Kamindu Mendis, Sahan Arachige, Dasun Shanaka, Chamindu Wickramasinghe, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, Eshan Malinga, Binura Fernando and Nuwan Thushara.