Sri Lanka fights back after Mushfiqur's 163 and Litton's 90
Sri Lanka fights back after Mushfiqur's 163 and Litton's 90
The final session of Bangladesh's innings saw five wickets lost quickly, then Pathum Nissanka's third Test ton put Sri Lanka on the driver's seat.
Bangladesh had a strong grip on the match for most of day two in Galle, thanks to brilliant batting from Mushfiqur Rahim, Najmul Hossain Shanto, and Litton Das. Together, they scored a massive 401 runs, helping Bangladesh reach 484 for 9 by stumps. But the air of the game changed completely after a two-hour rain delay, which gave Sri Lanka the opening it needed to bounce back.
Before the rain, Bangladesh looked set to post a huge total maybe even 550 or 600. Two massive partnerships 264 between Shanto and Mushfiqur, and 149 between Mushfiqur and Litton had put them in a commanding position. But after the break, the pitch had a bit more moisture, and Sri Lanka’s bowlers took full advantage.
Milan Rathnayake, who had bowled tightly all day without much reward, suddenly became the star. He bowled 22.4 overs for just 38 runs and picked up key wickets after the rain. He clean bowled Jaker Ali with a sharp inswinger, got Nayeem Hasan to edge one behind, and then knocked over Taijul Islam with a delivery that angled in.
Asitha Fernando also played a big role. He broke both of Bangladesh’s big partnerships first removing Shanto in the morning with a mistimed shot to mid-off, and then trapping Mushfiqur LBW late in the day. The decision was reviewed, but it stayed with the umpire’s call.
Debutant Tharindu Rathnayake added to the pressure by bowling tight lines to Litton Das. Eventually, Litton tried a reverse sweep and ended up giving a catch to Kusal Mendis.
Earlier in the day, Bangladesh looked comfortable. Sri Lanka had a few chances missed run-outs and dropped catches but nothing clear-cut. Mushfiqur even hit one just over Prabath Jayasuriya’s head, and Litton was dropped at midwicket by Pathum Nissanka.
Milan had left the field earlier with what looked like a muscle issue but returned after lunch and nearly got Mushfiqur with a ball that jagged back in. The appeal was turned down, and the review showed it was just clipping the stumps umpire’s call again.
Then came the rain. And when play resumed, Sri Lanka came out with renewed energy. Litton tried to accelerate, especially against Prabath, playing some lovely late cuts. But Mushfiqur was quiet and seemed tired, which may have led to his dismissal.
Looking back, Bangladesh might wonder if they should have scored faster when the pitch was flat and the bowlers weren’t getting much help. They mostly scored at around three runs per over, which allowed Sri Lanka to stay in the game. For comparison, Australia had scored at four an over earlier this year in Galle, putting much more pressure on the bowlers.
There were moments when Bangladesh did try to push the pace like just before lunch when they scored at five an over but those bursts were rare. In the end, apart from the three top scorers, the rest of the batting lineup only managed 68 runs.