DHAKA, Dec 19: Captain Mahela Jayawardene said Sri Lanka would maintain the highest level of intensity when they play a two-Test series against Bangladesh starting later this month.

The first Test in Dhaka starts on Dec 26 at Mirpur with a day’s break on Dec 29 for parliamentary elections in Bangladesh.

The second Test will be in Chittagong from Jan 3-7.

They will also play a tri-nation one-day tournament from Jan 10-16 against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.

“Each and every game that I play, I take it seriously. It’s as simple as that,” Jayawardene told a news conference on Friday. “Doesn’t matter whether it’s Bangladesh or anybody else.

“Bangladesh are an improving side, young side. We don’t want to leave any room for them to get close to us. That’s the attitude,” added the 31-year old middle-order batsman.

Sri Lanka have toured Bangladesh only once for a full series in 2006, when Jayawardene was first made captain replacing injured Marvan Atapattu.

They won the Test series 2-0 but Bangladesh gained their only one-day win against Sri Lanka in going down the 2-1 ODI series defeat.

“Yes, it wasn’t a great start as we lost a one-day game to Bangladesh. But the important thing for us is to improve as a team,” said Jayawardene.—Reuters