Pakistan lived to fight another day courtesy of New Zealand’s win over England on Friday, and now needs a comprehensive win over Sri Lanka at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Kandy on Saturday to qualify for the semifinals of the T20 World Cup 2026.
Still sitting third with a solitary point and a negative run rate, Pakistan needs to muster up a strong effort to pip the Kiwis, who have three points and much better net run rate. Pakistan needs to win by at least 63 runs if it bats first, or overhaul its target in 13.1 overs if it bowls first.
Either way, Pakistan’s fate could rest on Sahibzada Farhan, who could break Virat Kohli’s all-time record for most runs in a T20 World Cup edition. The opening batter has carried his team’s batting on his shoulders to amass 283 runs from five innings, and is just 36 away from equalling the Indian’s haul from 2014.
But a glimmer of hope emerged from the middle-order’s contribution against England. Shadab Khan has time and again injected tempo late in the innings in this tournament. His strike rate of 157 against spin could prompt him to take on Maheesh Theekshana. With the addition of Fakhar Zaman, Pakistan holds a favourable match-up against Dushan Hemantha and Dunith Wellalage.
Sri Lanka has much to mend and would be desperate to not end its Super Eights winless.
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Captain Dasun Shanaka issued an apology after his team’s listless display against New Zealand led to Sri Lanka’s elimination. Its fans have shown up in swarms, and Saturday’s contest will be a chance to give them something to cheer about.
The biggest concern has been the side’s batting which has succumbed to pressure in both its Super Eight games, especially in the PowerPlay. Against England, it lost five wickets in the first six overs, and could only stack up 20 runs in the same phase against the Kiwis.
The downturn in Pathum Nissanka’s form has been a microcosm of a misfiring Sri Lanka. The opener had carted his team to a win with his century against Australia. But since his half-century against Zimbabwe, Nissanka has posted just nine and zero in the two high-stakes games.
The burden falls on the bowlers too. Sri Lanka threw away its match against New Zealand due to poor death bowling, where it leaked 70 runs from four overs. Dushmantha Chameera and Dilshan Madushanka are the only frontline options fit to take the field and would be expected to have better hold over proceedings.
The bowling in the opposite camp received a mood lifter with the inclusion of Shaheen Afridi. The left-arm pacer made a statement with his four-wicket haul upon return to the starting lineup against England.
If his early strikes dent Sri Lanka early, Pakistan has enough spin to establish a stranglehold over the host.
Published on Feb 28, 2026
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![Caitlin Clark rewrites record books with historic 45-point outing INDIANAPOLIS — Even before Caitlin Clark took the floor on Friday, she had the feeling something special was in store. If nothing else, she was trying to will it into existence.Individually, she had struggled to find a rhythm since returning from injury. As a team, the Fever needed a big night from their superstar with fellow All-Star Aliyah Boston out.But even by Clark’s lofty standards, Friday was something special.Clark tallied a franchise record 45 points to go along with 10 assists, becoming the first player in WNBA history with a 40-10 game, to lead the Fever to a dramatic 110-107 win over the Seattle Storm.“I feel like you just have to believe you’re going to have those types of nights and you have to visualize having those types of nights and I feel like that’s what I did,” Clark said. “It’s not always going to go your way…I know all the time and the work that I’ve put in and people believe in me and, more than anything, I believe in myself.“You just got to dig your feet in a little bit and, when it’s not going your way, nobody cares. Like you find a way to make it better and find a way to help your team win and make this team better and I feel like that’s what I always try to do.”When her team needed her most on Friday, Clark dug in for a fourth quarter masterpiece. Not only did she finish with 16 points in the frame, but she scored or assisted on 17 of the final 19 points for Indiana. No shot was bigger, though, than her stepback three with 39 seconds left to put the Fever up 105-102, giving them a lead they would not relinquish.“It’s incredible,” Fever head coach Stephanie White said. “It’s special. She does things that we haven’t seen…In the moment, sometimes it’s surreal to see. Heck, I looked down at the stat sheet at the end of the game and it’s like, ‘Holy s—, 45 [points] and 10 [assists].’ I mean, it’s just incredible.”After starting the season hot, things haven’t been smooth sailing for Clark. A back injury has plagued her in recent weeks, limiting her to just four games since June 24. For most of those outings, she’s looked like someone searching for her rhythm.But Friday felt different from the jump. Not only did Clark sense it, but her coach could see it, too.“She seemed lighter,” White said of Clark pregame. “She seemed positive. She seemed like she was bouncy. I think she felt good. I think every day we’ve seen a little bit more of it.”Ironically, it was Clark’s backcourt mate who looked destined for the big night in the first quarter. Kelsey Mitchell scored 17 of her 30 points in the opening frame, helping the Fever to an early double-digit lead. In another bit of history from the night, Clark and Mitchell’s 75 combined points are the most by a duo in franchise history.It wasn’t until the second quarter that Clark really found her groove, doing so predominantly at the free throw line, helping her to 14 points in the period. The Fever desperately needed it as the Storm pulled themselves back into the game to trail by just three at the break.Seattle only kept coming in the second half and eventually built up an eight-point lead in the fourth with 5:23 remaining. However, that became the turning point for both Clark and the Fever as they steadily chipped away at the deficit.Clark showed off her growing array of ways to get buckets, mixing mid-range jumpers with drives to the basket and her patented stepback jumper. A 3-pointer with 2:23 gave her a career-high 38 points and closed the deficit to one. A few possessions later, Clark found Monique Billings for an and-one layup with 1:11 left to tie the game.The sequence of the night, though, came shortly after.Following a Fever turnover in a tie game with just under a minute remaining, Clark raced back on the fastbreak to strip Flau’jae Johnson and win back possession. She followed that up with the biggest shot of the game, turning a broken play into the go-ahead 3-pointer to blow the roof off the arena.“I just think that when she’s really in a flow, [she] reads the game as good, if not better than anybody,” White said. “I think she’s grown into taking what the defense gives her and we always know she has the ability to make big shots and she did all of that tonight.”There’s never a bad time for a 45-point night, but this could hardly come at a better one for Clark. Limited by injury and a minutes restriction, Clark hadn’t found a groove since returning to the lineup on July 8. Finding her rhythm again, then, was a positive in itself on Friday.The 45 points? A welcome bonus.“It’s tough when you come back from injury,” White added. “Your body feels different. Mentally, you want it to happen so badly. Sometimes you second-guess yourself and that’s part of it. Rhythm, timing, all the things that happen when you haven’t played for a little while. So it was huge. It was big time for her and for us.”Funnily enough, White noted pregame that Clark was still on a minutes restriction that had hovered right at 25. That number came and went in the fourth quarter without a hint of Clark coming off the floor.Nothing was taking her out of that game. Not on a night as special as Friday.“Steph knows better than that,” Clark joked with a smile. “Trainers know better than that. They would get an earful. But I told Steph at halftime, like I felt really good and I didn’t want to lose this game…I’ve spent a ton of time on [my body] and I trust the people around me that have really helped me. I always find confidence in that, so I know I’m doing all the right things and there’s no way I was ever coming out of the game in the 4th quarter.“It didn’t matter. I would play with one leg.” #Caitlin #Clark #rewrites #record #books #historic #45point #outing](https://i0.wp.com/platform.sbnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/07/gettyimages-2285922189.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0%2C10.732984293194%2C100%2C78.534031413613&w=1200&ssl=1 "Caitlin Clark rewrites record books with historic 45-point outing INDIANAPOLIS — Even before Caitlin Clark took the floor on Friday, she had the feeling something special was in store. If nothing else, she was trying to will it into existence.Individually, she had struggled to find a rhythm since returning from injury. As a team, the Fever needed a big night from their superstar with fellow All-Star Aliyah Boston out.But even by Clark’s lofty standards, Friday was something special.Clark tallied a franchise record 45 points to go along with 10 assists, becoming the first player in WNBA history with a 40-10 game, to lead the Fever to a dramatic 110-107 win over the Seattle Storm.“I feel like you just have to believe you’re going to have those types of nights and you have to visualize having those types of nights and I feel like that’s what I did,” Clark said. “It’s not always going to go your way…I know all the time and the work that I’ve put in and people believe in me and, more than anything, I believe in myself.“You just got to dig your feet in a little bit and, when it’s not going your way, nobody cares. Like you find a way to make it better and find a way to help your team win and make this team better and I feel like that’s what I always try to do.”When her team needed her most on Friday, Clark dug in for a fourth quarter masterpiece. Not only did she finish with 16 points in the frame, but she scored or assisted on 17 of the final 19 points for Indiana. No shot was bigger, though, than her stepback three with 39 seconds left to put the Fever up 105-102, giving them a lead they would not relinquish.“It’s incredible,” Fever head coach Stephanie White said. “It’s special. She does things that we haven’t seen…In the moment, sometimes it’s surreal to see. Heck, I looked down at the stat sheet at the end of the game and it’s like, ‘Holy s—, 45 [points] and 10 [assists].’ I mean, it’s just incredible.”After starting the season hot, things haven’t been smooth sailing for Clark. A back injury has plagued her in recent weeks, limiting her to just four games since June 24. For most of those outings, she’s looked like someone searching for her rhythm.But Friday felt different from the jump. Not only did Clark sense it, but her coach could see it, too.“She seemed lighter,” White said of Clark pregame. “She seemed positive. She seemed like she was bouncy. I think she felt good. I think every day we’ve seen a little bit more of it.”Ironically, it was Clark’s backcourt mate who looked destined for the big night in the first quarter. Kelsey Mitchell scored 17 of her 30 points in the opening frame, helping the Fever to an early double-digit lead. In another bit of history from the night, Clark and Mitchell’s 75 combined points are the most by a duo in franchise history.It wasn’t until the second quarter that Clark really found her groove, doing so predominantly at the free throw line, helping her to 14 points in the period. The Fever desperately needed it as the Storm pulled themselves back into the game to trail by just three at the break.Seattle only kept coming in the second half and eventually built up an eight-point lead in the fourth with 5:23 remaining. However, that became the turning point for both Clark and the Fever as they steadily chipped away at the deficit.Clark showed off her growing array of ways to get buckets, mixing mid-range jumpers with drives to the basket and her patented stepback jumper. A 3-pointer with 2:23 gave her a career-high 38 points and closed the deficit to one. A few possessions later, Clark found Monique Billings for an and-one layup with 1:11 left to tie the game.The sequence of the night, though, came shortly after.Following a Fever turnover in a tie game with just under a minute remaining, Clark raced back on the fastbreak to strip Flau’jae Johnson and win back possession. She followed that up with the biggest shot of the game, turning a broken play into the go-ahead 3-pointer to blow the roof off the arena.“I just think that when she’s really in a flow, [she] reads the game as good, if not better than anybody,” White said. “I think she’s grown into taking what the defense gives her and we always know she has the ability to make big shots and she did all of that tonight.”There’s never a bad time for a 45-point night, but this could hardly come at a better one for Clark. Limited by injury and a minutes restriction, Clark hadn’t found a groove since returning to the lineup on July 8. Finding her rhythm again, then, was a positive in itself on Friday.The 45 points? A welcome bonus.“It’s tough when you come back from injury,” White added. “Your body feels different. Mentally, you want it to happen so badly. Sometimes you second-guess yourself and that’s part of it. Rhythm, timing, all the things that happen when you haven’t played for a little while. So it was huge. It was big time for her and for us.”Funnily enough, White noted pregame that Clark was still on a minutes restriction that had hovered right at 25. That number came and went in the fourth quarter without a hint of Clark coming off the floor.Nothing was taking her out of that game. Not on a night as special as Friday.“Steph knows better than that,” Clark joked with a smile. “Trainers know better than that. They would get an earful. But I told Steph at halftime, like I felt really good and I didn’t want to lose this game…I’ve spent a ton of time on [my body] and I trust the people around me that have really helped me. I always find confidence in that, so I know I’m doing all the right things and there’s no way I was ever coming out of the game in the 4th quarter.“It didn’t matter. I would play with one leg.” #Caitlin #Clark #rewrites #record #books #historic #45point #outing")
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