Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha scored 107 off 90 balls as his side beat Sri Lanka by 37 runs in the opening match of the ODI tri-series at Rawalpindi on Sunday, 18 October 2026. According to Sky Sports, it was his fourth ODI century, and he was named Player of the Match. ESPN reported that the match was the first of the tournament, which Pakistan began with a victory.
Kusal Mendis, the Sri Lanka captain, won the toss for a fourth successive time and elected to field, according to Sky Sports. Pakistan had slipped to 118-4 in the 22nd over when Agha began to rebuild. ESPN said he reached his fifty off 48 balls, and that he added 97 with Hasan Nawaz, who made 37, and 64 with Arafat Minhas, who scored 18. Pakistan were eventually bowled out for 305 in 49.5 overs.
Agha reached his century with an edged boundary, Sky Sports reported. Earlier, Babar Azam and the 19-year-old debutant Saad Baig had shared 74 for the third wicket, but Eshan Malinga removed both in successive overs. Malinga finished with 4-46 and Asitha Fernando took 3-59, according to ESPN. It was Agha's first international appearance since August, the ICC reported, before he took the field at Rawalpindi.
Sri Lanka's reply ended on 268 in 48.1 overs. Pavan Rathnayake contributed 79 and Janith Liyanage 60. According to Sky Sports, Sri Lanka stood at 91-4 in the 20th over when Rathnayake and Liyanage came together and added 119. Heavy dew left the ball wet, and Pakistan's pacers were unable to get it to reverse-swing, the outlet said, but Sri Lanka still fell short of the target.
The innings followed a difficult few months. Sky Sports reported that seven Pakistan players, Agha among them, were summoned back at the end of August amid a turbulent tour of England, and that he had led the team in the opening Test. The ICC reported that he also lost the T20 captaincy, missed out on the T20I side that won 2-1 against Sri Lanka and was left out of the Test team.
According to the ICC, Agha made an unbeaten triple century for Kingsmen in mid-September in the President's Trophy Grade-I, then scored another hundred at that level at the end of September. Salman Ali Agha, the Pakistan batter, said, as reported by the ICC: "I feel that we don't give enough respect to our domestic cricket." He also said: "Form going down and then climbing back up takes time. That was the case with me too."
Wisden reported earlier in 2026 that Agha's third ODI hundred, against Bangladesh, equalled the Pakistan record held by Mohammad Yousuf, who also had three ODI hundreds at No. 5 or lower. ESPN described the latest innings as one that came in the middle overs, when Pakistan needed to rebuild. The win gave Pakistan a successful start to the tri-series, in which Sri Lanka and England also feature.
Pakistan play England at Rawalpindi on Tuesday, 20 October, according to the ICC. Sri Lanka meet England at the same venue on 22 Oct, before the action moves to Lahore. Pakistan face England there on 25 Oct and Sri Lanka on 27 Oct, while Sri Lanka play England on 29 Oct. The final will be played on 31 Oct in Lahore.