Kusal Mendis has been in scintillating form in PSL 2026, smashing records left, right, and center. Is he flattering to deceive once again, or is something different this time around? Naman Agarwal investigates.
Kusal Mendis has spent much of his career oscillating between promise and frustration, never quite settling into the stability expected of a senior international batter, particularly in T20 cricket.
PSL 2026 might just be changing that narrative.
Also read: Kusal Mendis is exceeding expectations by adding consistency to explosiveness
In just eight games so far, Mendis has lit up the Pakistan Super League in a manner no overseas batter has done before.
The Sri Lankan star has smashed 493 runs at an average of 70.42 and a strike rate of 172.37. To put this in perspective, the previous highest PSL season aggregate by an overseas batter was Rilee Rossouw’s 453 in 2023, while no player with 450 runs or more in a PSL season – domestic or overseas – has either averaged higher or scored quicker than Mendis.