LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — Opener Fakhar Zaman overcame a bruised knee and a lean run to score 127 and lead Pakistan past Sri Lanka by three wickets in the final of the one-day international cricket tri-series on Saturday.
Zaman’s entertaining 12th ODI hundred and man-of-the-series Arafat Minhas’ robust 61 off 31 balls took Pakistan to a winning 331-7 in 48.3 overs. The Sri Lanka bowlers found it hard to control the wet ball because of dew.
Kamindu Mendis’ 131, his maiden ODI century, earlier propelled Sri Lanka to 325-8 while batting first for the first time in the tournament.
England was knocked out after losing three of its four games that included Sri Lanka’s second highest ever chase of 430 at Rawalpindi and Pakistan’s scintillating one-wicket win at Lahore.
Zaman came into the final with only 31 runs in his last four innings and spent most of the time in the dressing room after he injured his right knee while fielding.
Pakistan lost Maaz Sadaqat for 5 and Babar Azam for a five-ball duck, much to the disappointment of the 31,265 home fans at Gaddafi Stadium, but Zaman revived the chase with 19-year-old Saad Baig, who made 74 off 75 balls. They put up a better-than-a-run-a-ball 149-run partnership against scrappy Sri Lanka bowling and fielding.
Sri Lanka’s Maheesh Theekshana, making his first appearance in the tri-series, missed out on claiming Zaman on 69 and 106, when he couldn’t hold onto a return catch. Theekshana dropped Zaman again, a sitter on the boundary, after he reached his century off 84 balls.
Zaman’s 99-ball knock, including 11 fours and six sixes, finally ended in the 34th over when he was clean-bowled by Dilshan Madushanka with Pakistan still 106 runs from victory. Madushanka took 3-63.
The wet ball couldn’t help Sri Lanka as the young pair of Minhas and Hasan Nawaz (37 not out) kept their nerves in a 94-run stand by rotating the strike consistently.
Asitha Fernando, who conceded 72 runs, added to the drama by bagging the wickets of Minhas and Faheem Ashraf off successive balls with Pakistan needing two for victory. Skipper Shaheen Shah Afridi smashed Madushanka for a winning six over midwicket.
“We made a great comeback in the bowling in the last 10 overs,” Afridi said. “There was a collapse again (in batting) but Fakhar played a brilliant knock. I always say Fakhar scores in big games … Saad, Arafat, and Hasan Nawaz have all made crucial contributions which is good for Pakistan cricket.”
Kamindu Mendis and opening partner Avishka Fernando (38) gave Sri Lanka a solid start of 87 then Mendis and the in-form Pavan Rathnayake contributed another stand of 146 with brisk scoring in the middle overs.
Afridi trapped Mendis lbw off a fuller delivery in the 42nd over. His 128-ball knock featured 12 fours and two sixes. He consistently rotated the strike with Rathnayake, who was denied his third century in the tournament when he holed out to long-on in the 45th after scoring 77 off 65 balls.
Pakistan, without an unwell Shadab Khan, pulled Sri Lanka back in the death overs through the pace bowlers. Sri Lanka scored 87-6 in the final 10 overs as Afridi, Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf all bagged two wickets each.
“We were short by 25-30 runs,” Sri Lanka captain Kusal Mendis said. “Our bowling unit did well in the powerplay (but) our mistakes in the fielding cost us which we need to work on moving forward. There are a lot of positives to take from this series … (and) there is room for improvement.”
See AP’s full cricket coverage here
Pakistan's Arafat Minhas plays a shot during the final of tri-series one-day international cricket match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka, in Lahore, Pakistan, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)
Pakistan's Interior Minister and Chairman of Pakistan Cricket Board Mohsin Naqvi poses with the players of the Pakistan team, after Pakistan won by three wickets in the final of tri-series one-day international cricket match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka, in Lahore, Pakistan, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)
Sri Lanka's Pavan Rathnayake plays a shot during the final of tri-series one-day international cricket match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka, in Lahore, Pakistan, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)
Sri Lanka's Kamindu Mendis follows the ball after playing a shot during the final of tri-series one-day international cricket match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka, in Lahore, Pakistan, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)
Pakistan's Saad Baig plays a shot during the final of tri-series one-day international cricket match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka, in Lahore, Pakistan, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)
Pakistan's Fakhar Zaman celebrates after scoring a century during the final of tri-series one-day international cricket match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka, in Lahore, Pakistan, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)
More heavy rainfall produced flash flooding and mandatory evacuations in a wide swath of the Southwest on Sunday, including in a Colorado tourist town bracing for its main river to rise to historic levels, as weary residents in the normally arid region deal with another massive drenching.
Officials in Pagosa Springs, a southwestern Colorado town of more than 2,000 in the Rockies located near ski resorts and known for its hot springs, warned in a Facebook post of potentially “catastrophic flooding” as the San Juan River was forecast to crest at more than 20 feet (6.1 meters) late Sunday night.
“To put the forecast into perspective, during the devastating 1911 flood that wiped out most of what existed as the town of Pagosa at that time, the San Juan River crested at approximately 17.8 feet (5.4 meters),” the Archuleta County Sheriff’s Office said in a separate Facebook post. “This is a potentially catastrophic flood event."
Communities across Arizona, meanwhile, issued mandatory evacuations.
In the tourist destination of Sedona, Arizona, officials ordered residents near Oak Creek to leave immediately as flood waters rose and multiple people were trapped in their homes.
Nearby Yavapai County and the community of Camp Verde issued similar evacuation order s for residents living near swollen rivers and creeks.
More than 100 miles (160 kilometers) southeast of Sedona, officials in Gila County ordered the total evacuation of Gisela, a small community of several hundred residents along Tonto Creek. The wet conditions even produced flash floods, river flooding and swift boat rescues in Tucson, some 230 miles (370 kilometers) south of Sedona.
“We are getting two or three months of rain in a span of a couple of days,” said Aaron Hardin, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Tucson.
Rain fell nearly nonstop Sunday in Flagstaff, Arizona, flooding local roads and overwhelming storm drains. Police and city officials closed several roads around the mountainous city.
Outside Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, people filled plastic bags with sand to try to prevent further flooding inside. Luke Willson said water got into the garage, the basement and underneath the church building, as well as in an office where the computers are. “The pumps are pumping, but they’re not pumping fast enough,” he said.
The latest round of soaking rains started Saturday evening and was expected to saturate the region through Monday. The weather service estimates as much as 4 inches (10 centimeters) of rain could fall across the region, fueled by a series of Pacific storm systems.
The weather service issued flood warnings and watches for nearly all of Arizona and parts of southern Utah, southwestern Colorado and western New Mexico, in addition to part of southern Nevada. That includes the sparsely populated Four Corners region where Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah meet.
The weather service office for Salt Lake City said previous storms that soaked the area could contribute to excessive rain runoff during the latest downpours, especially in Washington County, Utah, and Zion and Capitol Reef National Parks.
“Flood prone areas will likely become inundated at times, and backcountry roads will likely become impassable from this excessive runoff,” a weather service statement said.
Officials in Pagosa Springs said anyone in low-lying areas along the San Juan, Rio Blanco, Navajo and Piedra rivers should head to a designated shelter at a local church.
They advised residents not to wait to leave their homes as emergency crews may be extremely limited during the worst of the storm. The highway entering town also was closed to inbound traffic, and residents were advised to avoid contact with the San Juan River after sewage was discharged into it.
Katie German, owner and chef of Bruin Coffee in Pagosa Springs, said downtown had been evacuated and that there was street flooding. German said she was most worried about the one bridge into town washing out and trucks carrying everything from food to fuel not having a way in.
Town officials had just lifted an evacuation order from flooding last week only to reimpose it Saturday night with the San Juan forecast to crest Sunday night at 21.9 feet (6.7 meters), according to Vicki Shaffer, public information officer working the floods for the Archuleta County Sheriff's Office.
“I’m worried about my business, worried about my employees, definitely worried for everybody in this town,” German said. “This town, we’re a very, very, tight community. We all help each other out.”
Officials in La Plata County, which is west of Pagosa Springs, said all public roads were closed due to the flooding.
In Sedona, longtime resident Michelle Grimm worried about her community after viewing the rushing waters of Oak Creek rising perilously close to the underside of a pedestrian bridge near the center of town.
“I went out at eight this morning and I saw the bridge and I was like, ‘Oh, we’re in trouble,’” she said as she sheltered in place in her home Sunday afternoon.
“I’ve never seen them rescuing people with helicopters out of neighborhoods. I’ve never seen neighborhoods completely submerged in water,” Grimm said. “We’re just praying that the creek doesn’t rise anymore.”
A video shared by the Sedona fire department showed powerful flood waters inundating vehicles and rushing past homes and other structures. Other videos and photos shared on social media showed people standing on a pedestrian bridge taking photos and videos as churning, brown waters rushed underneath.
By Sunday afternoon, the drenching rains had largely subsided in the Sedona area.
Officials were watching Oak Creek as water levels were expected to peak by evening, said David McAtee, spokesperson for Yavapai County, which covers part of Sedona along with other impacted communities.
No injuries or deaths had so far been reported, he said. At least 100 homes were located in the evacuation zone and nearly 20 of the homes had residents who needed emergency assistance to relocate.
Heavy rains had forced the closure of several highways across Arizona on Sunday, the state Department of Transportation reported. Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs said state air rescue crews were assisting with rooftop evacuations and state transportation crews were helping clear debris.
The rain was expected to taper off across Arizona as wet weather moved eastward into other parts of the country, where it could also bring significant precipitation, said Brian Hurley, a senior meteorologist with the weather service in Maryland.
“It’s a pretty vigorous system,” he said. “It’s got a lot of moisture to work with.”
Marcelo reported from New York and Casey from Boston. Associated Press writer Christopher Weber in Los Angeles also contributed to this story.
A pedestrian crosses a flooded road in Flagstaff, Ariz., Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Felicia Fonseca)
A man uses a bottle to collect and dump rainwater from inside his car after getting stuck on a flooded street in Tucson, Ariz., Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026. (Mason Kumet/Arizona Luminaria via AP)
Fr. Matt Lowry ties a bag of sand to help with flooding Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026, in Flagstaff, Ariz. (AP Photo/Felicia Fonseca)
Members of Tucson Fire Department's Technical Rescue Team rescue a woman from her car after it became stuck in a flooded wash in Tucson, Ariz., SUnday, Nov. 1, 2026. (Mason Kumet/Arizona Luminaria via AP) I
A storm drain overflows into an already flooded street in Flagstaff, Ariz., Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Felicia Fonseca)
Floodwaters surround trailers at the Fun Valley Family Resort campground and RV part in South Fork, Colo., early Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (South Fork Fire Rescue via AP)
Pickup trucks are submerged along Highway 160 in South Fork, Colo., on Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (South Fork Fire Rescue via AP)
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