Sri Lankan bowlers had a great outing on Day 1 of the second Test as they left Bangladesh reeling at 220/8 at stumps at Sinhalese Sports Club, Colombo.
Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto’s decision to bat first backfired big time as Asitha Fernando (2/43), Vishwa Fernando (2/35) and Sonal Dinusha (2/22) hunted in pack.
Asitha Fernando drew first blood for Sri Lanka as he shattered Anamul Haque’s stumps for a ten-ball duck. After losing his partner, Shadnam Islam (46 off 93) and Mominul Haque (21 off 39) provided some stability with a short stand.
Just when things were beginning to ease out for the visitors, captain Dhananjaya de Silva came to his team’s rescue by getting rid of Mominul in his very first over, making him hit one straight to cover.
Captain Shanto walked in next, fresh from his historic twin centuries in the first Test. However, the skipper failed to weather the storm for his team as Vishwa Fernando managed to find his outside edge, which carried straight to wicketkeeper Kusal Mendis behind the stumps.
To add to Bangladesh’s woes, Tharindu Ratnayake dismissed the well-set Shadnam Islam, leaving the visitors reeling at 76/4.
His dismissal brought Mushfiqur Rahim and Litton Das to the crease, and the duo calmed the nerves in the dressing room with their measured approach.
They got involved in a 67-run stand for the fifth wicket, taking their team’s score past 140. However, debutant Sonal Dinusha made sure that their partnership doesn’t extend further by dismissing both Das (34) and Rahim (35).
The left-arm spinner made Das edge one to Kusal Mendis while playing a cut while Rahim ended up holing out in the deep, while attempting a slog sweep.
Following their dismissals, Mehidy Hasan Miraz (31) and Nayeem Hasan (25) also made some handy contributions lower down the order, before falling late in the day.
As a result, Bangladesh finished on 220/8 with Taijul Islam (9*) and Ebadot Hossain (5*) at the crease.
Source: India Today
--Agencies
