Lacking enough depth and quality with the ball, the Bangla tigers suffered a defeat against Sri Lanka in the two countries’ first Super 12 game at this year’s T20 World Cup on Sunday.
Bangladesh began impressively as they got Sri Lankan opener Kusal Perera (1) out in the very first over. But they failed to pile on the pressure at that stage and allowed Perera’s opening partner Pathum Nissanka (24) and Charith Asalanka (80) to stitch a partnership of admirable solidity.
Bangladesh needed to strike back, and that was provided by their great allrounder Shakib Al Hasan, who got Nissanka and followed that up with the wicket of Avishka Fernando for a duck. In a good passage for Bangladesh, Shakib’s twin blows were backed up by Mohammad Saifuddin (1/38), getting Sri Lanka’s talented allrounder Wanindu Hasaranga for just 6.
That brief passage brought the asking rate up, and it looked as if the Lankans would cave into the pressure. But Asalanka stood his ground firm and led another of his team’s comeback in the chase via a fantastic stand with Bhanuka Rajapaksa (53).
Two players produced timely boundaries through their vital fifth-wicket partnership of 86 runs. Both scored exceptional half-centuries and even though Rajapaksa got out near the finish line, Asalanka stayed there unbeaten till the winning post.
What hurt Bangladesh was the spring of crucial boundaries that Asalanka and Rajapaksa hit to keep their chase going. This was especially pertinent when their skipper Mahmudullah was forced to bring himself and another part-timer Afif Hossain on for a costly three-over phase, which was followed by another expensive over from Saifuddin.
Even young Mahedi Hasan (0/30) had an indifferent day with the ball. But what would displease Mahmudullah the most is that on a surface designed for him to flourish, experienced left-arm pacer Mustafizur Rahman (0/22) never got his radar right.
Performance in the second half was so much in contrast to the first half for Bangladesh, where led by Mushfiqur Rahim’s fantastic 57 off 37 and opener Mohammad Naim’s measured 62 off 52, they managed to cross the 170-mark.
Lahiru Kumara (1/29) and Chamika Karunaratne (1/12) made sure that Bangladesh still remained in Sri Lanka’s reach, which benefited their team immensely in the run-chase.
Brief scores
Bangladesh 171/4 in 20 overs (Naim 62, Rahim 57*; Karunaratne 1/12) lost to Sri Lanka 172/5 in 18.5 overs (Asalanka 80*, Rajapaksa 53; Al Hasan 2/17) by 5 wickets
