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COLOMBO, Sept 12: Sri Lankan spinners Rangana Herath and Muttiah Muralitharan triggered a sensational Bangladesh collapse by sharing seven wickets in 11 overs on the opening day of the first Test here on Monday.
Left-arm spinner Herath finished with a career-best 4-38 and off-spinner Muralitharan with 3-42 as Bangladesh were bundled out for 188 after being comfortably placed at 155-2 at the R. Premadasa Stadium.
Skipper Habibul Bashar top-scored for Bangladesh with a fighting 84 for his 21st half-century. He smashed 12 fours in his 96-ball knock before falling to a debatable run-out decision.
Bangladesh, missing strike bowlers Mashrafe Mortaza and Tapash Baisya due to injuries, did well to restrict Sri Lanka to 160-3 at stumps. Thilan Samaraweera (33) was batting with Mahela Jayawardene (17).
Jayasuriya, the former Sri Lankan skipper, cracked five boundaries in his 54-ball 46 before being brilliantly caught by Aftab Ahmed at extra cover.
Bangladesh owed their early advantage to Habibul, who put on 59 for the second wicket with Javed Omar (30) and 92 for the next with Ashraful (17) after his team had been put in to bat in overcast conditions.
Habibul looked set to complete his fourth Test century before being given run out by TV umpire Peter Manuel.
The Bangladeshi captain stepped out to turn Muralitharan on the on-side, but was rapped on the pads. Tillekeratne Dilshan fielded the ball at short-leg and hit the stumps as the batsman dived to regain the crease.
Habibul’s bat was in the crease, but the TV umpire took his time to rule that it was in the air when the bails came off.
The tourists’ collapse started with a loose shot in the afternoon session. Ashraful stepped out to loft Herath but mistimed it to Dilhara Fernando, who ran back to hold a well-judged catch in the covers.
Herath bowled Tushar Imran with a faster one before Muralitharan claimed his 550th Test victim when had Khaled Mashud (two) caught at first slip with a doosra, the delivery that turned away from the right-hander.
Habibul was the lone batsman to defy the Sri Lankan attack, executing handsome shots during his 96-ball knock. He was at his punishing best in the afternoon, hitting paceman Lasith Malinga for four boundaries in two overs.
He reached his half-century in the last over before lunch, firmly cutting Muralitharan for his seventh four.
SCOREBOARD
BANGLADESH (1st Innings):
Javed Omar c Sangakkara b Fernando 30
Shahriar Nafees b Malinga 3
Habibul Bashar run out 84
M. Ashraful c Fernando b Herath 17
Tushar Imran b Herath 0
Aftab Ahmed c S’weera b Herath 0
Khaled Mashud c S’weera b Muralitharan 2
Mohammad Rafique lbw b Muralitharan 9
Syed Rasel st Sangakkara b Herath 19
Shahadat Hossain lbw b Muralitharan 2
Enamul Haque Jr not out 0
EXTRAS (B-8, LB-2, W-1, NB-11) 22
TOTAL (all out, 44 overs) 188
FALL OF WKTS: 1-4, 2-63, 3-155, 4-156, 5-156, 6-158, 7-158, 8-170, 9-176.
BOWLING: Vaas 6-1-25-0; Malinga 8-1-44-1 (7nb, 1w); Fernando 4-0-29-1 (2nb); Muralitharan 14-1-42-3, Herath 12-4-38-4 (2nb).
SRI LANKA (1st Innings):
S.T. Jayasuriya c Aftab b Shahadat 46
M.S. Atapattu lbw b Rasel 18
K.C. Sangakkara c Ashraful b Rafique 30
T.T. Samaraweera not out 33
D.P.M.D. Jayawardene not out 17
EXTRAS (LB-4, W-1, NB-11) 16
TOTAL (for three wkts, 44 overs) 160
FALL OF WKTS: 1-41, 2-97, 3-130.
TO BAT: T.M. Dilshan, W.P.U.J.C. Vaas, H.M.R.K.B. Herath, M. Muralitharan, C.R.D. Fernando, S.L. Malinga.
BOWLING (to-date): Syed Rasel 9-1-41-1 (6nb); Shahadat Hossain 11-0-48-1 (2nb, 1w); Mohammad Rafique 14-5-35-1; Enamul Haque Jr 9-3-30-0 (3nb); Mohammad Ashraful 1-0-2-0.
UMPIRES: S.A. Bucknor (West Indies) and Asad Rauf (Pakistan).
TV UMPIRE: Peter Manuel (Sri Lanka).
MATCH REFEREE: Clive Lloyd (West Indies).—Agencies
