POBNEWS24, Dhaka, May 24, 2022: Renovation work is underway on the original press box. Therefore, seating arrangements for journalists have been made in the corporate box, the environment of which is more suitable for the privileged visitors than the work station. It is enjoyable. However, the first day of the second Test of the Bangladesh-Sri Lanka series, which started at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday, was spent enjoying the first day.
Bangladesh lost 5 wickets for 24 runs and ended the day without any loss. The story of this great comeback is thrilling. However, in this thrill, there is no mercurial mood, there is a nervous struggle to reach the desired goal.
The sixth unbroken partnership of 253 runs between Mushfiqur Rahim and Liton Kumar Das seems to be the triumph of Test cricket. The pair again set a world record for these two batsmen. Earlier, a team that lost 5 wickets for less than 25 runs in a Test where there was no century partnership in the sixth wicket partnership, whether this pair is on the way to triple by crossing the double century tomorrow!
The ICC chairman has been greatly appreciated for his private visit. But in the first hour of the Mirpur Test, all the BCB showdowns for the distinguished guests failed. The fresh memory of being bowled out for 53 and 60 in South Africa in 2016 without cutting the residue of the 43-run disaster in the West Indies came back to Mirpur yesterday. Bangladesh won the toss and elected to bat. They lost five batsmen in 7.5 overs. This is the second time in the 21st century that he has lost half of the innings in the shortest time. At that time it seemed that 43 was not impossible, or 53, at least the shame of 60 runs is going to be a new partner!
Chittagong Centurion Mushfiqur Rahim is at the crease? Liton Das, who came out of the dressing room slowly after the loss of Shakib Al Hasan as the fifth batsman, will be able to handle this push, no matter how in form he is. According to the past, in such a situation, Bangladesh’s highest partnership for the sixth wicket is 20 runs. So the test prediction starts without touching the hour of the match! Roughly three days, hands on the broadcaster’s head. On the other hand, the powerful bomb of social media has been set on fire, only the explosion is left.
The hero of the action movie appears like a feast at such a moment, he defuses the bomb at the last moment. In Mirpur, Bangladesh has got not one, but two heroes – Mushfiqur and Liton. Time has passed and they have forgotten the batting disaster and once took the remote control of the match in their hands. There are still three and a half innings left in the Test. However, the fate of the match is going to be decided by the bat of Mushfiqur-Liton. This is the summary of statements made by Bangladesh coach Russell Domingo or Sri Lanka’s Chris Silverwood after the first day. The longer this pair lasts, the more the match will lean towards Bangladesh. On the other hand, the Sri Lankans are waiting for the return of this broken alliance.
However, all the party reckoning seems to be written on the bat of Mushfiqur and Liton. The story of heroic batting is also present in Bangladesh cricket. The record opening pairing of Tamim Iqbal and Imrul Kayes in the second innings against Pakistan in Khulna is not a recent event. That return was a formidable counter-attack. And the return to Mirpur is a memorial with a pair to find the brick-and-plaster of the ruined palace. The memorial, which will provide inspiration in any misfortune of antiquity.
After they tied the knot, it seemed that the wicket of Mirpur had suddenly changed and the joyous Sri Lankan bowling unit was also depressed. Dimuth Koranaratne, the captain of the visiting team, who was shocked by the change of scenery like a feast, also ran the ball with four legs. But Mushfiqur, his part-time slow medium pace could not crack even in Liton’s mind.
Mushfiqur has always been a keen student of Test cricket. He bought a run for blood-watering labor. How much Mushfiqur can sacrifice in exchange for his wicket. Lytton, on the other hand, is as luxurious as ever, and his effortless batting gives the general gallery audience the pleasure of sitting in a corporate box. That Liton again dropped some inevitable runs but came in negligence. Just like yesterday, he sat out for a personal 46 runs. Asitha Fernando gave the bouncer the bait. Lytton caught it while hooking it up, but could not catch it. At the end of the day, Sri Lankan coach Silverwood lamented the heavy toll of this mistake.
That’s one. Mushfiqur and Liton made no more mistakes in the remaining 45 minutes of the day. The richness of any batter that gets extra time. Liton ruled the bowlers using this extra time. He has run around the field without mid-off. Most mid-wickets, pool shots. But the most attractive was Liton’s risk-free batting. How many innings he has raised the possibility of untimely death in a careless shot. Liton scored the third Test century of his career by reducing the level of false shots despite scoring runs at a strike rate above 60 yesterday.
Batting has the effect of a partner. Liton’s risk-free batting may have had the effect of Mushfiqur’s sage-like stability. He did not take the slightest risk. He decorated his ninth century brick by brick. And with the bat of two centurions, Bangladesh is shining on the scoreboard.
But in the first hour of the day the storm did not pass over Bangladesh. The two openers returned without a run. In Chittagong, Asitha Fernando took advantage of the morning wicket with Kasun Rajitha, who was fired as a ‘concussion sub’, leaving Mominul Haque out of the limelight. None of the five batsmen who were out could touch two figures, three were runless. Mirpur’s wicket has no minimum liability for this disaster. The two fast bowlers of the visiting team can be highly praised for taking advantage of the morning wicket wisely. The evaluation of the Bangladeshi batsmen who have been dismissed is absurd, all the more unnecessary on the day of enjoying Mushfiqur-Liton’s high batting!
