Sri Lanka had a good day with the ball on Day 1 in Colombo. Sonal Dinusha on his Test debut shone through with a couple of wickets supported by his teammates as Sri Lanka restricted Bangladesh to 220/8 in 71 overs on a rain-hit day in Colombo. Play was interrupted for 1.5 hours in the afternoon session. There were plenty of starts for Bangladesh but nobody really kicked on today.
Opting to bat first, Bangladesh once again lost Anamul Haque early. Mominul looked good for his 21 before giving his wicket away. Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto missed out, while Shadman Islam top scored with 46. Mushfiqur Rahim looked good for his 35 before giving his wicket away while Litton Das scored 34.
Mehidy Hasan Miraz back in the side chipped in with 31 while Nayeem Hasan scored 25. For Sri Lanka, apart from Sonal Dinusha, Asitha Fernando and Vishwa Fernando picked up a couple of wickets apiece while Tharindu Ratnayake and captain Dhananjaya de Silva picked one apiece.
Pitch Report and Playing XIS:
“It’s muggy, it’s hot. The 22-yard strip is far different from the one at Galle Stadium. In Galle, there wasn’t much grass to speak of- it was hardly green, mostly brown. But here, even in the first cover, there’s noticeable assistance for the fast bowlers. If Sri Lanka can get the ball close to the bat and challenge the Bangladesh batting line-up with the new ball, that’s where the game could tilt early. I think the first couple of days will offer pace and bounce, and from Day 3 onwards, we may start to see some turn,” reckons Farveez Maharoof in his pitch report.
Bangladesh Playing XI: Shadman Islam, Anamul Haque, Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Mominul Haque, Litton Das (wk), Mushfiqur Rahim, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taijul Islam, Nahid Rana, Ebadot Hossain, Nayeem Hasan
Sri Lanka Playing XI: Pathum Nissanka, Lahiru Udara, Dinesh Chandimal, Kamindu Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva (c), Kusal Mendis (wk), Sonal Dinusha, Tharindu Ratnayake, Prabath Jayasuriya, Vishwa Fernando, Asitha Fernando
Bangladesh lose early wickets; Shadman Islam keeps things steady in the morning session
Winning the toss and opting to bat first, Bangladesh did not get to the best possible start. Despite being dropped by keeper batter Kusal Mendis off Asitha Fernando, Anamul Haque did not last long and chopped on from Asitha Fernando for a duck. Both Asitha and Vishwa bowled well early on and hardly gave runs away. Mominul Haque came and joined Shadman in the middle. After a brief lull period, the runs started to come as boundaries were hit. Shadman was looking solid while Mominul was playing well till he was there.
Captain Dhananjaya de Silva brought himself into the attack and struck gold straightaway in the 17th over. A short ball from de Silva resulted in Mominul punching it hard and was picked up at short covers as Mominul fell for 21 off 39 balls with 3 boundaries to his name after getting a start. Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto joined Shadman Islam in the middle and the duo negotiated the rest of the session carefully and played out 26 overs. At Lunch Bangladesh were 71/2 in 26 overs with Shadman Islam batting on 43* and Shanto on 7*.
Sri Lanka pick up 3 wickets in elongated afternoon session; Mushfiqur Rahim keeps Bangladesh’s hopes afloat
It did not take long for Sri Lanka to strike after Lunch. Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto missed out today as he fell for 8 off 31 balls to Vishwa Fernando playing an away going delivery and getting the edge. Mushfiqur Rahim joined Shadman Islam in the middle at the score at 74/3. The set batter Shadman Islam was next to go as Sri Lanka went bang bang. Tharindu Ratnayake picked up the wicket as the drive from Shadman brought about his downfall as he fell for 46 off 93 balls laced with 7 boundaries. Bangladesh were reduced to 76/4 in 29 overs.
Litton Das joined Mushfiqur Rahim at the crease. Sri Lanka were a bit sloppy in the field and dropped some tough chances, but had control over the proceedings. The duo took the score to 90/4 in 33.2 overs when rain set in and delayed play for 1.5 hours.
When play resumed after the break, the duo continued to build the innings and played balls to the merit. There was a dropped chance in the 35th over when Lahiru Udara dropped Rahim at deep midwicket and conceded a boundary as the visitors were living dangerously. Both the players settled down and were playing their shots according to the merit of the ball and looked untroubled out there.
Prabath Jayasuriya failed to create any impression today. They added a 50-run stand which was much-needed for the tourists. Just when things were going well for Bangladesh, the debutant Sonal Dinusha broke the budding partnership as Litton Das fell for 34 off 56 balls laced with 2 boundaries and a six as Kusal took a good juggling catch behind the wickets as Dinusha got his debut Test wicket. The 67-run stand off 113 balls was broken.
Mehidy Hasan Miraz joined Mushfiqur Rahim in the middle and soon the players went off for the Tea Break with the score at 144/5 in 49 overs with Rahim batting on 34* and Mehidy having faced one ball.
Sri Lanka chip away at the wickets to end the day on the front foot
Mushfiqur Rahim and Mehidy Hasan Miraz resumed for Bangladesh hoping to take them to a good score at close with minimal damage. Mehidy was the aggressor after the interval as he got runs at will and quickly went into double figures. But the debutant Sonal Dinusha was not to be denied as he got his second wicket of the day and the big one of Mushfiqur Rahim.
Rahim tried to hit a slog sweep from outside off-stump and miscued it to deep midwicket as Vishwa Fernando took a good running catch. Rahim fell for 35 off 75 balls with 5 fours. Nayeem Hasan joined Mehidy Hasan Miraz at the middle with the score reading 160/6 in 54 overs.
The duo once again started to build a partnership to take Bangladesh forward as Mehidy was playing normal cricket and Nayeem was hanging with him. Both were playing to the merit of the ball and looked largely untroubled. But Vishwa Fernando struck back in the 64th over as Mehidy Hasan Miraz’s innings was cut short on 31 off 42 balls.
Kamindu Mendis took an excellent catch diving low down to his right and took it inches from the ground. Mehidy hit 3 boundaries in his innings as the 37-run stand for the 7th wicket was broken. Taijul Islam joined Nayeem Hasan in the middle with the score reading 197/7.
The 200-run mark was crossed as both the spinners played sensible cricket with Nayeem now the senior partner among the two. With the clock ticking down and light fading, Bangladesh were hoping not to lose another wicket before Stumps. Taijul hit a nice boundary but tragedy struck Bangladesh in the 70th over.
Asitha Fernando coming back for a fresh spell castled Nayeem Hasan for 25 off 51 balls with 2 fours to his name to get his second wicket. Nayeem tried to defend and the ball straightened to hit the off-stump. Nayeem was in his crease and got squared up a bit.
The score was 214/8 as Ebadot Hossain joined Taijul Islam in the middle. Ebadot hit a nice boundary off Tharindu and then after 71 overs, the light was not good enough and play was called off for the day. Taijul Islam is batting on 9* off 24 balls while Ebadot Hossain is batting on 5* off 5 balls as Bangladesh ended the day at 220/8 in 71 overs.
For Sri Lanka, two wickets apiece for debutant Sonal Dinusha and the two Fernando’s Asitha and Vishwa while Tharindu Ratnayake and captain Dhananjaya de Silva picked up a wicket apiece.
What Lies Ahead
With rain interrupting proceedings today, play will start 15 minutes early on Day 2 at 9:45 AM IST and Local Time to make up for lost time. Sri Lanka are in a much better position at this stage restricting Bangladesh to 220/8. With the tail in the middle, Sri Lanka will look to wrap things up quickly and start batting. They won’t want Bangladesh to get to 250. Bangladesh will hope that the tail wags and they get 30-40 runs to get past 250.
The pitch is aiding the bowlers but is not impossible to bat on. It is a result-oriented pitch one feels with so much at stake. Crucial WTC points up for grabs. Advantage Sri Lanka at this stage, but things can change very quickly when Day 2 begins. Another absorbing day awaits us at the SSC in Colombo.
Also Read: SL vs BAN: Najmul Hossain Shanto Headlines Rain-Hit Day As Opening Test Ends In Draw