Bangladesh tour of Sri Lanka 2021 News

It was a dream day for debutant leg spinner Praveen Jayawickrama as he not only picked six wickets in his maiden innings in international cricket but also broke Upula Chandana’s 21-year-old record for best figures on Test debut for Sri Lanka. Jayawickrama, 22, picked the wickets of the likes of Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim and Liton Das, some of the established names in international cricket. He ended up with the figures of 6-92. The day started with Sri Lanka declaring their innings for 493-7 even as wicket-keeper batsman Niroshan Dickwella remained unbeaten on 77 from 72 balls. Coming to bat, Bangladesh had a great start with the opening pair putting on 98 runs. Saif Hasan was the first international wicket of Jayawickrama. Najmul Hossain Shanto, the centurion from the last game was then removed for a duck by Ramesh Mendis. The experienced pair of Tamim and skipper Mominul then tried to steady the ship with a 52 runs stand. It was broken by Jayawickrama once again. Tamim missed his century by two runs. He now has three half-centuries in the series. Post this partnership, Mominul tried to build another one with another experienced man, wicket-keeper batsman and former skipper Rahim. But this 63 run partnership between the duo was the last considerable one as then the Bangladeshi batting order went down like a pack of cards. From 214-3, the team was all out at 251. The Sri Lankan team had a lead of 242 runs. Instead of enforcing the follow on, the Sri Lankan captain Dimuth Karunaratne came out to bat once again. The Lankans were rattled by the Bangla spinners as well as they lost two quick wickets to end the day at 17-2 with Karunaratne and Angelo Mathews at the crease. Mehidy Hasan and Taijul Islam picked one each to end the day at the Pallekele International Stadium.

Sri Lanka ended the second day’s play at 469/6 against Bangladesh on Friday in Pallekele. The home side began the day’s proceedings at 291/1 with Lahiru Thirimane and Oshada Fernando out there in the middle. While Thirimane struck 140 before getting out to Taskin Ahmed, Fernando notched up 81. Captain Karunaratne had also scored a century before getting out on Day 1. The hosts then lost some wickets in quick succession and Sri Lanka were reduced to 382/6 from 313/2 before Niroshan Dickwella and Ramesh Mendis joined hands and steadied the ship for the side once again to put an unbeaten 87 before the end of the day’s play. Dickwella was at 64* and Mendis at 22* when the stumps were called after bad lights stopped the play. Bangladesh pacer Taskin picked up three wickets while Mehidy Hasan, Shoriful Ismal and Taijul Islam scalped a wicket apiece. Oshada who missed out on a hundred during the course expressed his disappointment. "I'm very disappointed about not getting to a hundred. I was out for 90-odd in the West Indies as well, and when you're a batsman, you feel you need to get those runs. It doesn't matter where I get to bat - No. 3 or 4, or wherever, what you have to do is score runs as a batsman,'' Fernando told reporters after the day's play. Talking about Bangladesh bowlers, Fernando admitted that the visitors did bowl well in the morning session and resisted the batsmen to score runs quickly. "They bowled well in the morning, so we weren't able to score quickly then," he said. "They bowled line and length very well. There was a bit of cloud cover, they probably had some help from the surface as well,” he added. The first match of the two-match Test series between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh ended in a draw.

Yet again it proved to be a batting paradise at the Pallekele International Stadium as Sri Lanka took the Day 1 honour against Bangladesh on the opening day of the second Test. There was no hesitation in Dimuth Karunaratne’s mind after winning the toss. Batting first was a no-brainer and they justified the call by posting 291 on the board at the end of 90 overs losing just the wicket. The pitch seemed to be a belter as the bowlers got no help what so ever. Taskin Ahmed and Abu Jayed got some help early on but once Karunaratne and Thirimanne were set, the Bangladesh bowlers were all over the place and didn’t quite manage to break their partnership. Both Thirimanne and Karunaratne were hardly bothered by any of the bowlers. Karunaratne who has been one of the most consistent run-scorers for Sri Lanka in the longest format did his reputation no harm carving his way to yet another well-deserved Test century. It was his 12th Test century and he laid the foundation well for the rest of the batters. He was eventually dismissed after a partnership of 209 runs with Thirimanne. It was Shoriful Islam who bagged the wicket of the captain. Thirimanne played the field to perfection and never really allowed the bowlers to settle in. The stylish left-hander played some delightful shots as the bowlers found it difficult to bowl to a particular line to him. Mehidy Hasan did beat his outside edge on a few occasions but those were few are far between. Thirimanne reached a well-deserved century with a dab down the deep third man region. It was his 3rd Test hundred. Following Karunaratne’s dismissal, he did nothing silly and again build another partnership with Oshada Fernando who remained unbeaten on 40. They took their time but made sure that they don’t play any loose shots and end the day’s play without losing any more wickets. Brief Scores Sri Lanka 291/1 (Karunaratne 118, Thirimanne 131*, Oshada Fernando 40*, Shoriful Islam 1/52)

Bangladesh head coach Russell Domingo lashed out at his Bangladesh boys after failing to win the opening Test against Sri Lanka. Despite dominating the first two days of the match, Bangladesh ended up conceding a huge lead as the match ended in a tame draw. Domingo feels that with the current mental state of the Bangladesh players, they won’t be successful in the longest formats. The mentality to not lose rather than going for the win won’t help Bangladesh going forward feels Domingo. The Bangla Tigers are currently at the bottom of the points table in the ICC Test Championship and is looking to sign off their campaign in the tourney with a victory under their belt. Ever since making their Test debut way back against India in 2000, Bangladesh have never managed to produce consistent performances in Tests. Bangladesh have won just 14 out of the 122 Tests they have played so far. Out of the 14 victories, 11 have come against Zimbabwe and West Indies. As per reports in the Cricbuzz, it is learnt that Domingo felt that Bangladesh should have declared at tea on the second day just after crossing the 500 mark but skipper Mominul Haque allowed the batters to keep batting which wasted a lot of time. The approach clearly didn’t impress Domingo despite the skipper lauding his team for drawing the match especially after some poor performances in the longest format. "It is disappointing when a drawn Test is seen as a massive success. I am not here for drawn Tests. We don't want to lose Tests but we should have a mental shift. We have to play to win, and not merely be happy with draws. I have had six or seven Tests with the team now, I think I understand our team and culture. I know the areas we need to improve on, particularly on the mental side of things in Tests,” Domingo was quoted as saying by the Cricbuzz. There's a long way to go. There's a fear of losing Tests, and that's something that we have to come away from. We have to play to win. At the moment I feel we are playing not to lose. It is a mental shift that we need to make. That mental shift will take a bit of time. Guys haven't been successful in Tests. Until we change that mindset, we will always be okay with mediocrity. It is not something I want to be part of," he further added. Domingo feels that there needs to be a serious change in the mindset of the players. The current Bangladesh team lacks the intent in winning Test matches. Rather than being happy with a draw, they have to start thinking of victories in the longest format. Their record in Tests despite playing this format for over two decades is dismal, to be honest. "We want to take the team forward and play the game to win. We have to bat first in tough conditions. We have to declare to give ourselves enough time to bowl sides out. Those are the shifts that you have to make to become a serious Test-playing nation," Domingo said. Bangladesh missed the likes of Shakib Al Hasan for the Test series owing to his IPL commitments. With Shakib out of contention, Domingo said that they need to play five bowlers in the absence of Shakib which gives them a better chance in the longest format. Over the years, Bangladesh have focussed on atleast 7-8 batsmen but playing 5 bowlers in the opening Test gave a fair idea about their changes in attitude. However, it wasn’t replicated on the field. "I need to chat with the selectors this afternoon, but I think that's the way forward. When you have Shakib in the team, it allows you to play seven batters. When you don't have that all-rounder, we have to be brave, and try to have five bowlers who can get us 20 wickets. If it was solely up to me, it would be the way to go, but there's a panel of selectors that need to be consulted with, and it got to be a decision that we all have to support," Domingo quipped. Under the coaching of Domingo, Bangladesh have just managed to win a solitary Test in 8 attempts. Despite not being happy with their performance in the opening Test, Domingo is hopeful of the fact that Bangladesh can win the Test series against Sri Lanka. "We want to try to win the series. It will be a great achievement for Bangladesh to win a series in Sri Lanka. Winning a Test series abroad is a goal that we have set ourselves. We have to play well over the five days. Sri Lanka are a tough side to beat, especially at home. Our focus is on starting the Test well, and one session at a time," Domingo signed off.

The first Test between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in Pallekele ended in a draw after the final day of the game was curtailed by rain on Sunday. Bangladesh who batted first in what was a run feast at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium posted 541/7 (D) in the first innings. Opener Tamim Iqbal struck 90 while Najmul Hossain and captain Mominul Haque notched up individual tons during the course. While Hossain scored 163, Haque got out for 127. Apart from them, Mushfiqur Rahim and Liton Das also struck individual fifties for the side. Vishwa Fernando was the pick of the bowlers for Sri Lanka in the innings after he scalped four wickets for 96 in 35 overs. The home side then rode on some scintillating batting from Dimuth Karunaratane who scored 244 and Dhananjaya de Silva who went on to score 166 during the course to put 648/8 in reply. Lahiru Thirimane also chipped in with a half-century for Sri Lanka while Taskin Ahmed bagged three wickets for Bangladesh and Taijul Islam picked up a couple. The hosts took a first innings lead of 107 runs. Bangladesh then came out to bat in the second innings on Day 5. The Lankan team did pick up two early wickets but opener Tamim showed his class and took on the bowlers to score 74* off 98. Fast bowler Suranga Lakmal had both the wickets to his name in the second innings before the match was halted by the rain and eventually ended as a draw. Karunaratne who was adjudged man of the match for his knock said that he had a struggling time in West Indies and wanted to score runs at home. “I had a very tough time in the West Indies, so I wanted to make the most of these conditions. We thought the wicket would have pace and bounce, but the conditions and heat made the pitch flat. Bangladesh batters also played really well,” he said. The encounter witnessed huge amounts of runs being scored and the Sri Lanka captain admitted that the track didn’t really have much to offer to the bowlers. “There was nothing much for the bowlers, it was a batting paradise. There was no threat for the batsmen in the second innings as well, nothing much we could have done on this kind of a wicket. We need something in the pitch for the bowlers (in the next game), because we need 20 wickets to win,” he added. Bangladesh skipper Mominul credited the team for their performance. “It was a team performance, everyone contributed really well, especially Shanto. Tamim and Mushy also played crucial knocks and the bowlers, especially Taskin and the spinners, tried really hard,” he said. The second and final Test will begin on April 29 at the same venue.

Sri Lanka pacer Lahiru Kumara, who was injured fielding in the first innings of the first Test between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh being played in Pallekele, Kandy has been ruled out of the entire Test series. MRI scans on Friday evening confirmed the presence of hamstring injury, ruling out the pacer to bowl in the current match as well as from the one remaining game of the series. With Kumara injured, Sri Lanka now only have the option of three front line bowlers in Suranga Lakmal, Vishwa Fernando and spinner Wanindu Hasaranga. Kumara, 24, was making a comeback into international cricket after having been injured during the boxing day Test against South Africa earlier this year. But it is now the second Test in a row that he has been unable to complete. In the context of the game, Sri Lanka batted till Lunch on the fifth day and declared the innings at 648-8 with a decisive lead of 107 runs and asked Bangladesh to bat first. In their second essay, Bangladesh have scored 72 at the loss of two wickets with experienced Tamim Iqbal and skipper Mominul Haque holding on in the face of the Sri Lankan bowling attack.