‘Bowlers gave boundary balls’

Bangladesh scored 233 runs over two innings in the second Test and that points to a batting debacle. The Tigers were bowled out for 110 in the first innings before they perished for 123 runs in the second innings as Sri Lanka ran away with a 215-run victory.

The pitch did not help the batsmen but there was a clear lack of application in shot selection on a pitch where Sri Lanka's young batsmen in Kusal Mendis and Roshen Silva applied themselves to score crucial runs, with the former hitting a tone-setting fifty in the first innings and the latter striking match-winning half-centuries in both innings. Before the match, stand-in skipper Mahmudullah Riyad talked about showing intent but when asked about the difference in approach between the batsmen of the two teams, Riyad shifted the focus to the bowlers, even though it can be said that they did their job by taking 20 opposition wickets. 

"The difference was that when you look at [Rangana] Herath, [Dilruwan] Perera or [Akila] Dananjaya's bowling, you will find that we had to take lots of risks to hit boundaries off them. On the other hand our bowlers bowled five good deliveries before bowling a loose one to give away an easy boundary."

The skipper felt that the spinners had to take responsibility for the loss as well.

"We have to work on this aspect. We needed more patience on this wicket. The spinners could have bowled better, although the batsmen are to blame."

However, Sri Lanka spin wizard Rangana Herath felt that getting out for low scores led to extra pressure on the Tigers' bowlers.

"If you see the scenario, we scored 220 and they got out for 110 runs. So we had a lead of around 110 runs. So when those kinds of situations come you always get a bit of pressure on the bowlers. That's what happened, at the same time our batters batted well against spin. That's what happened in the last three days," Herath remarked when asked about the difference in discipline between Bangladesh and Lankan bowlers.