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Published : 18 Jun 2025, 10:37 AM
Sri Lanka have staged a late fightback on Day 2 of the first Test against Bangladesh in Galle, clawing their way back into the contest after conceding two massive partnerships and toiling for much of the day.
Bangladesh closed on a massive 484 for 9 after a dramatic post-tea collapse saw them lose five wickets for just 61 runs in the final session at the Galle International Stadium on Wednesday.
That came after Mushfiqur Rahim (163), Najmul Hossain Shanto (148) and Litton Das (90) had laid the foundation with stands of 264 and 149 for the fourth and fifth wicket respectively.
The momentum shifted following a two-hour rain delay, which brought life back into a largely unresponsive surface.
Milan Rathnayake, who had earlier struggled for breakthroughs, exploited the moisture expertly to rip through the lower order. He ended the day with figures of 3 for 38 in 22.4 overs, removing Jaker Ali (8), Nayeem Hasan (11) and Taijul Islam (6) in quick succession.
Asitha Fernando (3-80) also played a key role, breaking both major partnerships. He removed Shanto with a drive to mid-off before returning late in the day to trap Mushfiqur leg-before with one that nipped back -- upheld on umpire’s call after review.
Debutant Tharindu Rathnayake (3-196) took out Litton, tying him down with leg-stump lines before drawing a miscued reverse sweep that was taken by Kusal Mendis.
Resuming on an overnight 292 for 3, Bangladesh appeared poised for a total well beyond 500. Mushfiqur and Litton had looked largely untroubled, and Sri Lanka’s best opportunities came through a pair of missed run-out opportunities and two dropped chances -- one off each set batter.
Milan thought he had removed Mushfiqur before the rain break, striking him on the back pad with one that jagged in sharply, but the review upheld the umpire’s not-out decision on marginal impact.
Rain swept in soon after Sri Lanka’s unsuccessful review as the change in weather brought a shift in momentum.
With moisture aiding the bowlers, Sri Lanka tightened the screws. Before that, Litton Das briefly lifted the scoring rate, targeting Prabath Jayasuriya (0-154) with a pair of elegant late cuts.
Mushfiqur, by contrast, struggled to rotate the strike and appeared to tire, while likely contributing to his eventual dismissal.
Content to accumulate without taking risks, Bangladesh would rue their conservative approach on a placid surface as the scoring rate, just over three an over through the day’s play.
While Litton showed intent in patches -- notably before lunch when runs came at five an over -- such surges were infrequent.
As a result, beyond the contributions of Mushfiqur, Shanto and Litton, the rest of the Bangladesh batting lineup added just 68 runs, leaving them vulnerable to a late-order collapse.
