Pakistan hosts ODI tri-series featuring Sri Lanka and England

Pakistan opener Fakhar Zaman says the upcoming tri-series against Sri Lanka and England will provide an important opportunity to test combinations ahead of the 2027 ODI World Cup. Pakistan begin their campaign against Sri Lanka at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Sunday, with England completing the three-team tournament before next year’s World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia. Fakhar said Pakistan were excited about the challenge and had already begun planning for the global event, although some of their preparations would remain private. “There are a lot of plans regarding the tri-series, some of which you cannot make public,” he told reporters on Friday. “We have all the plans for the World Cup in the back of our mind, so we will try to do well in this tri-nation series and also build a combination because we are playing one-day matches after a long time.” Pakistan’s squad combines experienced players such as Babar Azam, Salman Ali Agha and captain Shaheen Shah Afridi with younger options including Saim Ayub, Hasan Nawaz and wicketkeeper Saad Baig. Fakhar, Pakistan’s only double centurion in men’s one-day internationals, believes the players’ recent first-class cricket experience will help them adjust to the demands of the 50-over format. “The best thing about the combination is that all the boys are coming after playing the first-class season. So everyone is in rhythm,” he said. “When you play first-class cricket, then 50 overs does not seem that long to you, and when you play T20 regularly, then it seems a little long.” Pakistan have enjoyed encouraging results in recent ODI series, sweeping Sri Lanka 3-0 at home in November 2025 and beating South Africa 2-1 before defeating Australia by the same margin at home in May and June 2026. They lost 2-1 away to Bangladesh in March. Fakhar said the team understood the pressure on senior players to perform, acknowledging that criticism came with the territory when results fell short of expectations. “When you perform, you get appreciation from fans. When you don’t do well, then it is natural that things don’t feel good,” he said. Pakistan have reached major tournament finals and semi-finals in recent years but have struggled to turn those appearances into titles. “We are excited right now, and we definitely have this thought in the back of our mind that it has been a long time since we have won a big event,” Fakhar said. “The happiness that you get as a nation after winning the trophy, you don’t get that kind of happiness no matter how many finals or semi-finals you play.”