BANGLADESH TOUR OF SRI LANKA, 2025
Najmul Hossain walks back after being dismissed ©AFP
Sri Lankan batting all-rounder Kamindu Mendis is confident that they can bowl out Bangladesh sooner rather than later on Day 4, as the hosts are heavily in the driving seat.
Bangladesh are trailing by 96 runs with four wickets in hand, and are staring at an innings defeat after slumping to 115 for 6 in their second innings
“I think the pitch today spun more than yesterday. [In the] Last session if you see, the ball is turning now. Both ends you get turn as of now,” Kamindu told reporters after the third day’s play. “The game is in our hands now and we will try and bowl them out for a low total,” he said.
Kamindu said that he feels they are in a good position after posting 458 runs in their first innings while added that he feels sorry for Kusal Mendis(84) and Dinesh Chandimal(93) as he feels they missed well deserved hundred.
“We are in a good position and that’s thanks to the first innings lead that we were able to take,” he said.
“In cricket a batter needs to go through all these situations. He scores 80 and 90s and even 30s and 40s. Every batter tries to score a hundred and win the game. Kusal was very unfortunate to [get] run out. So was Chandi [Chandimal]. That’s part of the game,” he said.
“It’s not something that we have done all of a sudden. We have done well in Test cricket in recent two or three years. We play to win. It’s a big process that goes for three years or so. Win and defeats is common to every team but we try to make most out of situations,” he said.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh left-arm spinner Taijul Islam admitted that it was a collective batting failure after their disappointing batting display on Day 3.
“We didn’t play well. There is no particular reason, we couldn’t play well as a team,” Taijul said. “Our batting wasn’t that good. In the first innings, the wicket was good. Each batter got out after getting set. Had there been two hundreds or two fifties, the situation might have been different,” he said.
Taijul, who picked his 17th career five-wicket haul in Sri Lanka’s first innings, claimed five wickets for 131 runs in 42.5 overs, added that he turned to his variations well to earn success and relished the opportunity of bowling long spells for his country.
“There are some variations, as to which seam position you can be successful; I just continued that, Taijul said. “I like bowling long spells. I am used to that. This is not something like I don’t want to bowl long spells,” he said confidently.
With only Litton Das (13*) as a recognized batter left at the crease, Bangladesh now need a special effort to avoid innings defeat and save the series, following a draw in the first Test in Galle.
© Cricbuzz
