Pathum Nissanka's sensational form continued as he cracked his second consecutive Test century, propelling Sri Lanka to a commanding position of 290/2 by the end of Day two of the second Test against Bangladesh. This came after Bangladesh was dismissed for 247 earlier in the day.
The in-form opening batsman remained unbeaten on a chanceless 146, crafted from 238 deliveries and adorned with 18 boundaries. This innings followed his career-best 187 in the drawn first Test played in Galle the previous week. Nissanka's resilience was further highlighted by his significant 194-run partnership for the second wicket with Dinesh Chandimal, which wore down the Bangladesh bowling attack.
Chandimal, who looked set for a century, fell just seven runs short of the milestone. He was dismissed for 93 off 153 balls when he attempted a reverse sweep off Nayeem Hasan and inadvertently gloved the ball to wicketkeeper Litton Das in the fading light. This was the first instance of Chandimal being dismissed in the 90s in his Test career. Bangladesh's decision to review an lbw appeal against nightwatchman Prabath Jayasuriya proved unsuccessful, and he will resume batting on 5 on the following day.
Earlier in the innings, Nissanka and Lahiru Udara provided Sri Lanka with a brisk start, accumulating 88 runs before lunch. Taijul Islam, the left-arm spinner, made the breakthrough shortly after the interval, dismissing Udara who made a quickfire 40 off 65 balls. Udara's attempt to play a straight delivery while staying in his crease led to a successful review by Bangladesh.
Bangladesh's fast bowler Nahid Rana struggled with his line despite consistently bowling at speeds around 144 kilometers per hour. His tactic of using bouncers to challenge Nissanka and Chandimal also proved ineffective. Chandimal had a moment of luck when he successfully overturned an lbw decision when he was on 30. Nissanka reached his fourth Test century off 167 balls with a well-executed backfoot drive for a boundary against Rana shortly after the tea break. This century marked his eleventh score of 50 or more in his 18th Test match. Chandimal also became more aggressive towards the end of the day's play, utilizing reverse sweeps effectively. Both batsmen demonstrated good footwork against the spinners and punished any loose deliveries from the fast bowlers.
In the morning session, Bangladesh resumed their innings at 220 for eight and managed to add another 27 runs before losing their remaining two wickets. Left-arm spinner Sonal Dinusha, making his Test debut, was the pick of the Sri Lankan bowlers, finishing with figures of three for 22. Fast bowler Asitha Fernando also contributed with three wickets for 51 runs.