(ESPN) Bangladesh fought to the end but the 185-run fourth-wicket partnership forged by Pathum Nissanka (114) and Charith Asalanka (91) proved enough in Chattogram, as Sri Lanka secured a narrow three-wicket win to level the series 1-1.
Bangladesh’s fighting spirit brought the game close, but they were also aided by the indecision and doubt shown by the Sri Lankan batting unit. While the eventual margin of victory – three wickets and 17 balls to spare – suggests a relatively comfortable win, Sri Lanka had somehow got themselves into a position of clutching defeat from the jaws of victory when they briefly slid from 228 for 3 to 251 for 6.
The wobble left them needing 36 off 53 with the last recognised pair of Dunith Wellalage and Wanindu Hasaranga at the crease, and while in theory this should have still been a straightforward chase, Bangladesh’s exceptional ground fielding combined with the pair’s reluctance to take risks meant the equation dropped down to 20 off 26.
But any lingering nerves were settled when Hasaranga finally took matters into his own hands to strike two sixes and a four in the space of five deliveries to kill the game. He would fall with just two left to get, leaving Wellalage to secure the winning runs.
That it even got to that point would have been barely conceivable when Nissanka and Asalanka were going strong in their mammoth stand. Set a target of 287, Sri Lanka had fallen to 43 for 3 when the pair came together, and following an early period of fortune where some edges and mis-hits ended up safe, they set about their work.
While keeping the asking rate in check through their stand, Nissanka would end on a 113-ball 114 while Asalanka’s 91 came in 93 balls. Their dismissals within eight deliveries of each other weren’t ideal, but looking back, they had done enough.
The Bangladesh fighting spirit that had forcibly made this into a contest was evident not just late in the evening, but also in the afternoon. After two innings of substance from Soumya Sarkar and Najmul Hossain Shanto, it was Towhid Hridoy’s slow-burn innings and late onslaught that had seen them hit back after Sri Lanka had set them on course for a far lower total than their final score.
Hridoy, who had come into bat in the 13th over, ended unbeaten on 96 off 102, an innings and strike rate that belied the acceleration he provided at the death to boost an innings that had looked in danger of losing steam. Along with Taskin Ahmed, whose cameo of 18 off 10 also provided excellent support, the pair put on 50 off just 23 deliveries as Bangladesh scored 80 off the final 10 overs – 54 of which came in the final five.
