Bangladesh believes they still have a chance if they bat out on the third day.
The Chattogram Test has started slowly, with only 11 wickets falling in the
first two days, and both Bangladesh and Sri Lanka believe the third day will be
crucial. The home team hopes to bat for the entire day, while the visitors
desire early wickets.
Sri Lanka are 476 runs ahead after scoring 531. Bangladesh lost one wicket in
the 15 overs they had to play on the second evening, but there was enough
evidence to suggest that the bowlers will continue to work hard. Kamindu Mendis, one of six Sri Lanka batters to achieve half-centuries, said his team
would try to grab a few of early wickets on the third morning to continue
dominating the Chattogram Test.
"The pitch, compared to the last game, is quite good for the batters,"
Kamindu told reporters. "But, in the long run, I believe it will benefit
the spinners more. In that regard, I believe I was given a favorable
opportunity. Some balls turned today, but I believe the spinners will play a
more important role tomorrow. At the same time, we have three very good fast
bowlers - they've already taken one wicket - so I believe the combination is
good. If we can pick up two or three wickets in the morning, we'll be in
command."
Bangladesh's batting coach, David Hemp, stated that the home
team will have to bat on the third day to remain in contention in this game.
"We are still thinking about winning the game," he remarked. "It
might seem strange given that we are [476] runs behind. The essential step will
be to negotiate tomorrow. If we do well, we can bargain the next day. If we do
that, you never know what may happen in terms of batting. First and foremost,
we need to ensure that we bat well in three sessions tomorrow."
Bangladesh could learn from Sri Lanka's approach. The visitors strung together
five 50-plus stands, two of which exceeded the century mark. Kamindu and
Prabath Jayasuriya scored 65 for the seventh wicket before batting for an
additional 17.1 overs with the last three batters, Vishwa Fernando, Lahiru
Kumara, and Asitha Fernando.
Kamindu has batted admirably with the tail during this Test series. Following
his 173-run seventh wicket partnership with Dhananjaya de Silva in the second
innings in Sylhet, Mendis batted for another 26.2 overs with the final three
batters.
"When you bat at No 7 or 8, you have to trust the tail-enders,"
Kamindu went on to say. "I believe I did it. They performed an excellent
job of helping me. Our top-order batters performed admirably in this inning. We
have a couple half centuries. They made a valuable contribution to the team.
"I believe that in cricket, someone can score a great
hundred while someone else cannot. We had six half-centuries in the first
innings. It is still a valuable contribution to the team. We put more than 500
on the board. I believe we completed our plan."
Dinesh Chandimal and captain de Silva both scored 50 as Sri Lanka appeared to
be in good shape on the second day. Bangladesh also lost four catches, bringing
their total to seven for Sri Lanka's innings.
The catching reached its low point when Jayasuriya edged Khaled Ahmed to Najmul
Hossain Shanto at first slip. The ball flew out of his grasp, only to reach
Shahadat Hossain at second slip, who parried it to Zakir Hossain at third slip,
who ultimately squandered the opportunity. Khaled was incensed, kicking the
turf twice.
"I thought [Shahadat] Dipu had the best chance to get that [catch],"
he remarked. "Both of those fielders field with a short leg, therefore
their responses are good. I figured when it popped out, one of them would be
able to grab it. Unfortunately, that is not the case. That's not something we
see very often.
"Being a slip fielder is a challenging job. A lot of it
is about anticipation and expectation. You have to expect the ball to come to
you every time. Unless you have that perspective, life might be challenging.
The more you practice, the better your chances of success in a game
environment.
Catching is one of many issues in Bangladesh. The main one will be their
hitting lineup, which has had four consecutive failures. Zakir and Joy started
well, but the latter lost to Lahiru Kumara's dipping inswinger late in the day.
The opening pair is yet to bat together for a half-century, having only done so
nine times.
Hemp stated that Bangladesh believes in the couple, who have shown signs of recovery. "We didn't negotiate well enough with Sri Lanka's bowlers at Sylhet last week. I believe that is the major step forward. It is what we practiced for three days [before the test]. Joy's dismissal was disappointing. It would have been wonderful to not be depressed at the end of the day. They are a new partnership, so it takes some time to get into it. I'm just impressed with how they applied themselves.
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