The Sri Lankan team put up a valiant effort. They scored 397 runs in their first innings thanks to Angelo Mathews' brilliant effort. However, considering the conditions of the ZACS surface, Sri Lanka should have scored more runs in the first innings to mentally push Bangladesh. Oppositely, the hosts should be satisfied with their performance, which saw them restrict Sri Lanka to a reasonable total. Bangladesh are clearly aiming for a big total to take a huge first-inning lead in the BAN vs SL first Test 2022.
Sri Lanka’s First Innings
The pitch conditions indicated that it would be a belter for the batters. Therefore, Sri Lankan captain Dimuth Karunaratne didn’t have to think twice about batting first. Sri Lanka didn’t have a brilliant start, losing a couple of wickets before lunch on day one. Nayeem Hasan picked up both the openers for Bangladesh. He was included in the place of Mehidy Hasan Miraz. Nayeem has justified his inclusion by taking six wickets in the first innings.
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For Sri Lanka, veteran Angelo Mathews played a magnificent 199-run knock and single-handedly carried the innings to a big total. Mathews made a 92-run stand with Kusal Mendis for the third wicket after losing the openers in the first session. It seemed they were well set at the crease and ready to form a big partnership in the middle. However, Mendis (54) threw away his wicket after trying to smash Taijul in the mid-wicket region.
The biggest stand of Sri Lanka’s innings came between Angelo Mathews and Dinesh Chandimal for the fifth wicket. The experienced duo added 136 runs together and guided Sri Lanka to get past the 300-run barrier. Nayeem eventually broke the stand when Sri Lanka had 319 runs on board. In fact, the visitors lost four wickets in the span of four overs.
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The innings was then carried by Mathews and the tail-enders. He was on his way to completing his double hundred, but his attempt to slog Nayeem's delivery didn't go as planned, and he wasted the perfect opportunity. Bangladesh bowled Sri Lanka out for 397, with Mathews finishing one run shy of 200 in his marathon innings. Shakib Al Hasan took three wickets in addition to Nayeem, and Taijul took one wicket.
The Scenario of Bangladesh’s First Innings
Day three ended with Bangladesh reaching 318/3, just 79 runs short of Sri Lanka's first innings total. The veteran Tamim Iqbal and his new opening partner Mahmudul Hasan Joy gave the selectors some optimism by amassing 168 runs together in 48.5 overs. Tamim may have finally found a true partner in the Test format in Joy.
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Mahmudul Hasan was trapped by a bouncer by Asitha Fernando and lost his wicket after scoring his first fifty (58) at home in the Test format. Bangladesh lost two more quick wickets—Najmul Hossain Shanto and skipper Mominul Haque—and were down to 184/3.
Then Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur Rahim carried the innings to 220/3 at the end of day 3. In the meantime, Tamim completed his 10th Test century and first against Sri Lanka. He remained unbeaten on 133* at tea but didn’t come out to bat in the third session. The southpaw had to retire after suffering a cramp in the second session of day three. He was just 19 runs shy of reaching the 5,000 marks in Tests.
Litton Das came out to bat in place of Tamim in the post Tea session. Bangladesh didn’t lose any more wickets in the final session as Litton and Mushfiqur played out the day. Litton has remained unbeaten with 54 runs, his 12th Test fifty overall. On the other hand, Mushfiqur Rahim has remained undefeated with 53 runs, his 26th fifty overall. Mushfiqur only needs 15 runs to complete his 5,000 Test runs.
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The Bangladesh team is on a goal to put up a massive total so they don't have to bat again. They are well on their way to achieving this target. If Bangladesh keep batting like this, they will be able to amass a big total by the end of their first innings in the BAN vs SL first Test 2022.
Bottom Line
Bangladesh are only 79 runs behind Sri Lanka's first innings total with six wickets in hand. The pitch is still in terrific shape for the batters, with no big fractures apparent thus far. Bangladesh batsmen are set to dominate the Lankan bowling unit on day four if the surface remains the same, allowing them to take a substantial lead in the first innings. As a result, the play on day four of the BAN vs SL first Test 2022 is vital and will ultimately determine the match's fate.