Kamindu Mendis struck a belligerent 131 off 128 balls, his maiden One-day International century, to help Sri Lanka post a formidable 325 against Pakistan in the tri-series final at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Saturday.

The left-hander’s commanding innings ensured Pakistan were set a target of 326 to claim the title, after the Islanders recovered from a promising start by the hosts’ bowlers to build a strong platform before Pakistan pulled things back in the closing overs.

Sri Lanka openers Kamindu and Avishka Fernando began briskly, scoring freely while keeping risks to a minimum. Their assured start took the visitors to more than 50 without loss at the end of the first 10 overs.

Pakistan had brought in Faheem Ashraf for Shadab Khan, who was ruled out of the final on medical grounds after being struck by a bouncer in the fifth ODI against Sri Lanka. The visitors, meanwhile, replaced pacer Eshan Malinga with spinner Maheesh Theekshana. The contrasting selections suggested the two sides had read the conditions differently.

That assessment appeared to be reflected in the early stages of Sri Lanka’s innings. Pakistan’s pace attack struggled to make an impact, while it was Salman Ali Agha who provided the first breakthroughs, claiming the only two wickets the hosts took before the final 10 overs.

Avishka missed a sweep against Salman and was struck on the front pad, with the umpire raising his finger to give the opener out leg-before in the 18th over. Four overs later, Sri Lanka captain Kusal Mendis stepped out of his crease and drove the ball back towards Salman, who showed sharp reflexes to leap and take a superb return catch.

Beyond those two dismissals, the innings belonged largely to Kamindu, who took charge of the scoring and kept Sri Lanka moving through the middle overs.

He negotiated a brief period in which boundaries were hard to come by before shifting gears and taking on the Pakistan bowlers. At the other end, Pavan Rathnayake provided valuable support, the pair adding 146 runs for the third wicket after Rathnayake came in at number four.

Kamindu brought up his century in the 34th over, expertly cutting a Faheem delivery over the wicket-keeper’s head to reach the landmark. His innings combined patience with timely aggression, keeping the scoreboard ticking while ensuring Sri Lanka retained control.

Rathnayake continued the rich vein of form he has displayed throughout the series, bringing up another half-century in 47 deliveries. He used the pull and sweep shots effectively to put pressure on the bowlers and maintain the momentum of the partnership.

It was an underwhelming outing for Pakistan’s bowlers, with Arafat Minhas finishing wicketless and Naseem Shah conceding at an economy rate of eight runs per over. However, the fielding side managed to rein in Sri Lanka during the death overs and prevent the visitors from making a late charge towards a total of 350 or more.

At 238-2 after 40 overs, Sri Lanka appeared well placed to post a total close to, or in excess of, 350. But Pakistan struck back through their captain Shaheen Shah Afridi, who trapped Kamindu leg-before in the 42nd over before dismissing Dasun Shanaka soon afterwards. Shanaka had made a brisk 17 off just nine balls.

Rathnayake’s innings ended when he miscued a delivery from Haris Rauf and was caught by Babar Azam at wide long-on. Janith Liyanage also struggled to get going, scoring just six off nine balls before falling to Naseem.

Haris and Naseem then dismissed Dunith Wellalage and Sahan Arachchige in quick succession, further slowing Sri Lanka’s progress. However, a wayward penultimate over from Naseem allowed the visitors to cross the 320-run mark. Sri Lanka added four more runs to finish on 325, leaving Pakistan with a challenging target of 326 in their bid to lift the trophy.