Sri Lanka compile big total

After a shaky start, Sri Lanka closed on 449-7 on day 1 of the second test against Bangladesh.

Winning the toss, Sri Lanka, unsurprisingly, elected to bat, despite the possibility of a lively pitch in the first hour.

After an opening stand of 28, Bangladesh’s opening bowlers claimed 4 quick wickets with some intelligent swing bowling. First to go was Marvan Atapattu, an outswinger from Shahadat Hossain finding the outside edge, after Atapattu had been nearly clean bowled leaving an inswinger the previous ball.

With the score still on 28 Syed Rasel got one to swing back into Jayasuriya, catching him in front, leaving a simple decision for the umpire. Hossain then bowled a perfect inswinger to Jayawardene, finding the gap between bat and pad, and the top of off stump. Sangakkara never looked in good touch, and after Rasel , playing only his second test, set him up with a series of outswingers, before getting one to come back and remove the bails, he joined them in pavillion.

At 48-4, Bangladesh were well on top, but as their new ball bowlers grew tired, they had no more seamers to back them up with, and reverted to their 2 specialist spinners. Unfortunately for Bangladesh, the wicket of Jayawardene was to be their last for 280 runs and nearly 60 overs.

Thilan Samaraweera and Tillakaratne Dilshan began the job of rescuing Sri Lanka from an almost embarrassing position. The pair seized the initiative back from the Bangladeshi bowlers, and after reaching 107-4 at lunch, it was during the afternoon session when the runs began to flow.

Dilshan, an injury worry before the game, was the more aggressive of the two, as the pair put on 161 runs in the session, he scored 103 of those, bring up his century off just 104 balls. Samaraweera was slightly more sedate taking 173 balls for his ton.

Their magnificent partnership of 280 was brought to an end when Dilshan edged part-time seamer Aftab Ahmed to the keeper, for his highest test score to date of 168. Samaraweera was caught at mid-wicket off Rasel with the second new ball, and was shortly followed back by Rangana Herath, who missed a straight one.

Bangladesh’s ordeal was not quite over yet, however. Chaminda Vaas and Muttiah Muralitharan shared an unbroken stand of 49 for the 8th wicket, both dishing out some lusty blows to Bangladesh’s bowler, and with the left-hander scoring his 9th test half century, Sri Lanka closed on 449-7.

With an overnight declaration possible, Bangladesh must be ruing wasting a good start once again, and will have to bat well to avoid yet another innings defeat.

Sri Lanka 449-7
Tillakaratne Dilshan 168, Thilan Samaraweera 138, Chaminda Vaas 61*
Shahadat Hossan 3-104, Syed Rasel 3-125