Facing uneven bounce and variable pace, Bangladesh were bundled out for 247 in the first innings of the Colombo Test against Sri Lanka on the second day morning.
Opting to bat first after winning the toss, Bangladesh’s top and middle-order showed glimpses of resilience but failed to convert their starts into a commanding total.
Anamul Haque Bijoy, who had earned a Test call scoring ample runs in domestic cricket, failed to produce anything impressive in this tour. In the first match, he failed to justify his place in the Bangladesh team; now, in the second match, he suffered a duck in the first innings.
Other opener Shadman Islam led the scoring with a patient 46 off 93 deliveries, while Taijul Islam (33), Mushfiqur Rahim (35), Litton Das (34), and Mehidy Hasan Miraz (31) all chipped in without managing to anchor the innings.
All these batters managed to get a good start facing the quality bowling attack of the hosts, but were disappointed to carry on.
Bangladesh faced the early setback of losing Anamul for a duck, and following that, they kept losing wickets at regular intervals.
Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto (8) fell cheaply after registering twin centuries in the series opener, while Mominul Haque contributed 21.
At 76 for 4, Bangladesh were in a spot of bother, but small but effective partnerships between the middle and lower order helped them recover.
Sonal Dinusha, playing in his debut Test, impressed with the ball, taking 3 for 22, including the key scalps of Mushfiqur and Taijul.
Fast bowlers Asitha Fernando and Vishwa Fernando shared five wickets between them, consistently troubling the batters with movement and bounce.
Both teams came to this match keeping a win in mind to seal the series.
Bd-Pratidin English/ARK
