Fakhar Zaman scored 127 runs against Sri Lanka in the final of the 2026 ODI tri-series, bringing up the 12th One Day International century of his career. The innings came in a Pakistan v Sri Lanka decider that The Guardian covered as a one-day international final, and both ESPNcricinfo and Cricbuzz confirmed the landmark as Zaman reached three figures.
Fakhar Zaman is a left-handed opening batter who represents Pakistan in One Day Internationals. He first came to global attention with a match-winning century in the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy final and has since built a reputation as one of ODI cricket’s most aggressive openers when he is in form.
Because he opens the batting, Zaman is usually among the first players assessed when Pakistan’s one-day innings either builds a solid platform or collapses early. That context matters when weighing both his 127 in the tri-series final and the dip in form that prompted former New Zealand coach Mike Hesson to speak out in his defence.
In the final of the ODI tri-series, Fakhar Zaman made 127 runs against Sri Lanka. The innings carried him past the three-figure mark and added another hundred to his personal tally in the format.
ESPNcricinfo reported that Fakhar Zaman “brought up his 12th ODI century,” and Cricbuzz confirmed the landmark with the headline “12th ODI ton for Fakhar Zaman.” The 127 in the final was therefore his 12th hundred in One Day Internationals.
According to The Guardian’s live coverage headline, the match was a tri-series cricket one-day international final between Pakistan and Sri Lanka. A tri-series is a limited-overs tournament in which three teams contest a round-robin schedule before the leading sides meet in a final. The headlines reviewed do not name the third team in this edition.
Reports describe the 127 as Zaman’s knock against Sri Lanka in that decider, but the available headlines do not state whether he batted in a successful chase or set a total, nor in which city or ground the final was played. Those details remain unreported here rather than assumed.
The innings drew coverage from several major cricket outlets on the day. Cricbuzz led with “Fakhar Zaman’s 127 vs SL” in its report on the ODI Tri-Series 2026 final, ESPNcricinfo flagged the statistical milestone as Zaman passed three figures, and The Guardian ran the match as a live one-day international report. The Times of India, meanwhile, connected the tournament to a broader discussion about both Zaman’s and Babar Azam’s form.
The Times of India reported that former New Zealand coach Mike Hesson backed Fakhar Zaman and Pakistan captain Babar Azam while both were struggling with their form. Describing the pair as “two of the greatest in history,” Hesson made what the newspaper called a bold claim about their standing in the sport.
The headline indicates Hesson was responding to a lean patch for both batters, though the specific matches, averages or stretches behind that struggle are not given in the report. What is clear is that an experienced international coach chose to publicly place Zaman alongside Babar Azam among the game’s elite.
Reaching 12 ODI centuries places Fakhar Zaman among the most prolific active hundred-makers in one-day cricket. Unlike a batter who registers a single memorable ton, a player with a dozen centuries has demonstrated sustained performance across different conditions, oppositions and stages of a tournament.
A hundred in a final is the highest-pressure form of that achievement. Whether Zaman’s 127 came in a winning chase or a match-winning total is not stated in the headlines, but scoring three figures on the biggest stage of a short tri-series carries weight regardless of the result.
Yes. Zaman scored a match-winning 114 in the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy final against India, the innings that announced him on the world stage. The 127 against Sri Lanka in the 2026 tri-series final echoes that pattern of producing a big hundred on the grandest of occasions.
Any account of the final beyond the runs, the milestone and the occasion would rely on information outside the available headlines.
The 12th ODI century, scored against Sri Lanka in a final, arrives alongside Hesson’s “two of the greatest in history” endorsement as the defining talking points around Fakhar Zaman at this moment. Together they frame a batter who is simultaneously facing questions about a dip in form and trusted to produce hundreds when the occasion demands them.
As of the 2026 tri-series final against Sri Lanka, Fakhar Zaman has scored 12 One Day International centuries. He reached that milestone during his 127-run knock in the final, an achievement confirmed by ESPNcricinfo and Cricbuzz in their match reporting.
Fakhar Zaman scored 127 runs against Sri Lanka in the final of the 2026 ODI tri-series. The available headlines do not say whether he batted in a chase or set a target, and they do not report the final's result, so the outcome should not be assumed.
Former New Zealand coach Mike Hesson backed Fakhar Zaman and Pakistan captain Babar Azam while both players were struggling with form. The Times of India reported Hesson describing the pair as "two of the greatest in history," a bold claim about their standing in one-day cricket.
A tri-series is a limited-overs tournament featuring three national teams. The sides play each other in a round-robin group stage, after which the top two teams contest a single final to decide the championship. The 2026 final in which Fakhar Zaman scored 127 was contested between Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
The available headlines do not report the result of the final. Coverage confirmed Fakhar Zaman's 127 runs and his 12th ODI century against Sri Lanka, but whether Pakistan won or lost, and the margin of victory, remain unknown from these reports, so no outcome should be inferred.
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