On the back of a fantastic display of stroke-making and grit from opener Pathum Nissanka and left-handed batter Charith Asalanka, Sri Lanka registered a crucial victory against Bangladesh by three wickets in the second ODI on March 15. As a result, the Islanders leveled the three-match series 1-1 with the decider slated to be played on March 18. Nissanka struck a stupendous century under pressure while Asalanka missed out on the three-figure mark by just nine runs.
Sri Lanka stutters in run chase
Chasing a challenging target of 287 runs, Sri Lanka got off to a horrendous start. Avishka Fernando (0), Kusal Mendis (16) and Sadeera Samarawickrama (1) were all in the dressing room with just 43 runs on the board. With series on the line, Sri Lanka needed a solid partnership between Nissanka and Asalanka to steady the ship, and the duo took the onus and dug their team out of a precarious situation.
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En route to a 185-run alliance, Nissanka brought up his century while Asalanka kept his foot on the gas and never allowed the Bangladesh bowlers to dictate proceedings. After scoring 114 runs off 113 deliveries with the help of 13 fours and three sixes, Nissanka was dismissed by Mehidy Hasan Miraz. In the very next over, Taskin Ahmed removed Asalanka (91 runs off 93 balls) and Bangladesh had a brief opening to take charge of the match.
A handy cameo from Wanindu Haranaga (25 runs off 16 balls) killed any hope of Bangladesh victory as Sri Lanka chased down the target with 17 balls to spare.
Taskin Ahmed and Shoriful Islam bagged two wickets while Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Mehidy Hasan and Taijul Islam chipped in with a wicket each.
Towhid Hridoy leads Bangladesh's charge with the bat
After being put into bat first, Bangladesh posted a score of 286/7 in 50 overs, thanks to a defiant knock from Towhid Hridoy, who remained unbeaten on 96 runs off 102 balls with the help of three fours and five sixes. Opener Soumya Sarkar played a valuable knock of 68 runs off 66 balls and registered a much-needed 75-run partnership with captain Najmul Hossain Shanto after Bangladesh lost their first wicket with naught on the board.
Shanto missed out on a half-century as he was dismissed after scoring 40 runs off 39 balls. Some handy contributions from the lower middle-order helped Bangladesh to post a decent score on the board.
For Sri Lanka, Hasaranga was the hero with the ball as he picked up four wickets, Dilshan Madushanka bagged two wickets while Pramod Madushan chipped in wicket.
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