Tamim Iqbal set the tone with a fiery 90 at the top of the order. Meanwhile, Najmul Hossain Shanto struck a fine 126 not out, while Mominul Haque complimented him well with an unbeaten 64 to help Bangladesh finish with 302/2 on day one of this first Test. Vishwa Fernando was the only Sri Lankan bowler who picked up wickets.
It was all Bangladesh at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on the first day of this two-match Test series against Sri Lanka. Najmul Hossain Shanto and Tamim Iqbal led the charge, and three out of Bangladesh’s top four smashed half-centuries to put them in a commanding position.
Mominul Haque surprised a few as he won the toss and opted to bat first on a greenish surface. However, the Bangladesh top-order vindicated that call and smashed their way to 302/2 at the end of the first day.
Tamim Iqbal started in prime fashion as he struck Suranga Lakmal for a couple of boundaries in the very first over of the day. However, left-arm seamer Vishwa Fernando dismissed Saif Hassan LBW in the second over. However, Shanto came in and blunted out the new ball as Tamim constantly found the boundary. The veteran left-handed opener raced away to a 52-ball half-century (his 29th Test fifty) while Shanto was stoic at the other end and kept feeding Tamim more of the strike.
The duo helped Bangladesh get to 106/1 in 27 overs in the first session as the Sri Lankan bowlers toiled hard. Dananjaya de Silva induced the edge from Shanto when the left-hander was on 28, but Niroshan Dickwella couldn’t hold on. Apart from that, Sri Lanka could barely create any more chances in that first session.
After the break, Tamim continued on his merry way while Shanto was solid and notched up his second half-century. The Sri Lankan bowlers toiled hard but just couldn’t breakthrough, and just when things looked gloomy, Tamim threw it away on 90. The left-hander guided one straight to first slip off Fernando to give the left-arm pacer his second wicket of the day.
It broke a 144-run stand between the two left-handers, and Sri Lanka may have felt they have an opening. However, skipper Mominul Haque walked in and piled on the misery. He joined hands with Shanto, who continued to make Sri Lanka pay for the dropped chance, and the duo kept the scoreboard ticking.
Bangladesh reached 200/2 at Tea and were superbly poised to finish the day off on a high, and they did exactly that. Shanto went on to register his maiden Test ton while Mominul reached his 14th Test half-century.
Sri Lanka looked flat at one stage and did not look like taking a wicket. However, the second new ball sprung them to life as their lines and lengths got a lot more consistent. They troubled the two set batters and went past the outside edge on a few occasions, but Both Shanto and Mominul survived the day to take Bangladesh to stumps with the loss of just two wickets in the entire day.
Fernando was the pick of the Sri Lankan bowlers, who were very inconsistent and toiled hard without much luck throughout the day. Shanto made full use of the life he got on 28 and smashed an unbeaten 126 while the Bangladesh skipper got himself to 64.
Sri Lanka will be desperate to turn things around on day two, and with the ball hard and new, they will look to make some early in-roads. Meanwhile, Bangladesh’s aim will be to bat long and maybe bat just once and pile on the misery.
Brief Scores:
Bangladesh 302/2 (Shanto 126*, Tamim 90, Mominul 64*, Vishwa 2/61)
