Pakistan clinched an emphatic eight-wicket victory over Sri Lanka to win the World Twenty20 final at Lord's.
Fittingly it was man of the match Shahid Afridi - who also starred in the semi-final against South Africa - who hit the winning runs: Afridi finsihed unbeaten on 54, and stood triumphantly mid-pitch with his arms aloft to celebrate the win.
Earlier Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara showed great character in hauling his side's ailing innings up to 138-6, hitting a composed 64 off 52 balls after his side had looked as if they would struggle to reach three figures.
Pakistan, who lost the inaugural tournament in the final to India two years ago, were clinical in successfully chasing their target, winning the match in the penultimate over for the loss of just two wickets.
Their Sri Lankan opponents had progressed through the tournament smoothly, winning all their matches and basking in the brilliant batting of Tillakaratne Dilshan and a distinguished bowling attack led by Ajantha Mendis.
But in the showpiece match both players lost their composure, allowing Pakistan to ruthlessly seize the initiative - and once in control of the match they doggedly refused to relinquish their grip.
Sri Lanka found themselves in dire straights at 32-4, and only Sangakkara's true captain's innings repaired the damage and helped build a competitive, if unspectacular, total of 138-6.
Pakistan bowled with precision and guile as their opponents contributed to their own downfall with a number of poor shots.
Abdul Razzaq earned the finest figures, finishing with 3-20 from his three overs, while spinners Saeed Ajmal and Afridi stifled the Sri Lanka batsmen in the middle overs.
The early loss of Player of the Tournament Dilshan for a fifth-ball duck was a huge set back for Sangakkara's side in the first over, with 17-year-old seamer Mohammad Aamer taking the prized wicket.
Veteran opening batsman Sanath Jayasuriya struck a breezy 17 off 10 balls, but saw his stumps scattered by Razzaq as his side suffered another blow.
Chamara Silva, in partnership with Sangakkara, put up stiff resistance, and a stubborn 35 from number eight Angelo Mathews ended the innings with a flourish - but Pakistan knew that a sensible batting display would see them past a total that was clearly below par for the conditions.
Kamran Akmal bludgeoned an electrifying 37 off 28 balls at the start of the Pakistan innings, but was stumped by the excellent Sangakkara after dancing down the track to Jayasuriya's left-arm spin.
Shahzaib Hasan was a steady influence at the other end, and his sluggish 19 off 43 balls gave Sri Lanka a glimmer of hope - but then in came Afridi to start what would be a match-winning innings.
Shoaib Malik was equally stoic, scoring 24 off 43 balls, but the stage was ostensibly left for Afridi, who struck two sixes near the end of the innings.
Pakistan looked to be stuttering slightly towards the end of their run chase before a dismal penultimate over from Isuru Udana, which conceded a staggering 19 runs, eased the pressure considerably.
A nurdled single into the off side from Afridi gave Pakistan victory and the World Twenty20 trophy, with Sri Lanka left to rue their capitulation on the biggest stage of the short format game.
Khan's side had been less than convincing earlier in the tournament, losing two of their first three matches and needed a win against the Netherlands just to make the Super Eights stage. But their performance in the final capped a remarkable resurgence, which started when they thrashed New Zealand.
Pakistan's players and supporters celebrated their first international silverware since the 1992 World Cup with jubilance on the Lord's turf, marking a fitting end to a sensational competition.
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