Watch cricket video highlights between Bangladesh vs Sri Lanak 1st test, played at Sylhet.
Day 1 Report
Bangladesh was three down and trailed by 248 runs at the end of a day that began with Sri Lanka’s top five getting skittled for just 57. Between, Sri Lanka recovered from a disastrous start to take control of the first Test match at Sylhet, thanks to centuries for Dhananjaya de Silva and Kamindu Mendis during a 202-run sixth-wicket partnership.
Three of the top four scorers in Bangladesh by stumps came from Vishwa Fernando and Kasun Rajitha, with nightwatcher Taijul Islam (0) and Mahmudul Hasan Joy (9) at the crease.
With two noteworthy exceptions, Dhananjaya and Kamindu demonstrated how simple it might be to bat if you were in position and the ball softened. Overall, it was a day that favored the quick bowlers. After uniting with the score at 57 for 5, the duo weathered the early movement that the seamers were taking advantage of to take Sri Lanka to lunch, and then they sprang into action following the intermission to force Sri Lanka back into the match.
They made 125 runs in a commanding post-lunch session, scoring at rates greater than a run-a-ball, leaving the Bangladesh seamers, who had seemed so dangerous in the morning, scratching their heads.
The bowlers, who had already failed to maintain consistent lines and lengths in the morning session, appeared to be a bit too eager to strive for wickets, considering that they were Sri Lanka’s final recognized pair.
The thing that stood out to Sri Lankans was how quickly they appeared to reimpose pressure on Bangladeshis. After surviving the game till lunchtime without suffering any more losses, both players unleashed a furious attack from the sidelines during the break.
It seemed as though Dhananjaya and Kamindu launched their attacks simultaneously, since they both reached their half-centuries and hundreds in the same overs. There was never a scarcity of boundaries; in fact, the scoring rate only started to decline when the spinners were in use. However, one of their standout qualities was their complete lack of willingness to take chances. They seldom ever set boundaries other than against bad deliveries, with the exception of a few opulent on-the-up drives, and they had little trouble finding singles.
More often than not, they caused their own misery at the conclusion of their innings. After making his first-ever Test century, Kamindu poked at one outside off a pitch, and Dhananjaya hooked the boundary rider at deep-backward square-leg.
However, things may have turned out very differently for Bangladesh if they had made the most of their early domination. Shoriful Islam had bundled Sri Lanka’s top order and had Kamindu edging to first slip on the opening delivery, but Mahmudul dropped it. Although it didn’t seem like it would be too expensive at the time, Bangladesh will undoubtedly regret losing that chance.
But up until then, everything had gone according to plan. On a rare green top at Sylhet, the seamers sent Sri Lanka in to bat and took full advantage of the movement available.
In the second over of the day, Nishan Madushka fell first, getting a thick edge through to third slip, where Mehidy Hasan Miraz made a wonderful catch with his head still high. After a while, things stabilized, but not for long since Kusal Mendis couldn’t decide whether to play or leave a brief one outside, so he ultimately guided it into the gully.
Later in the over, after having played pretty well up until then, Dimuth Karunaratne fell victim to a ball that swung in quickly from around the wicket, going past his drive and into off stump. Khaled Ahmed took all three wickets.
As Najmul Hossain Shanto went for a tight single, Angelo Mathews was caught far short of his crease, making matters worse for Sri Lanka. Dinesh Chandimal did not survive long either, having clipped Islam Shoriful’s leg slip after the umpire had referred the play. Shoriful had taken a good low catch that was upheld.
During this morning’s practice, Khaled was the best of the lot, but Nahid Rana, a rookie, looked deadly although somewhat unpredictable, with speeds consistently in the mid-140s. Despite facing some criticism from Dhananjaya and Kamindu, he managed to conclude his first Test innings with three wickets each.
However, if Bangladesh’s batsmen are to remain competitive in this Test, they will have to endure an equally taxing morning session on day two, with Sri Lanka’s seamers having similar early luck.
