SL vs BAN: "Sadeera Samarawickrama Took The Game Away From Us" - Shakib Al Hasan After Loss To Sri Lanka In Asia Cup 2023

The Shakib Al Hasan-led Bangladesh National Cricket Team lost by 21 runs against the Dasun Shanaka-led Sri Lanka National Cricket Team in Match No.2 of the Asia Cup 2023 Super Four stage at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Saturday, September 9.

Bangladesh won the toss and elected to field first in the match. They picked up the early wicket of Dimuth Karunaratne but failed to capitalize on it, allowing Kusal Mendis and Pathum Nissanka to build a solid 74-run partnership.

After that they weren’t able to deal with the threat of Sadeera Samarawickrama, who scored a sensational 93, to push Bangladesh on the back foot. Also, skipper Dasun Shanaka chipped in with 24 runs to help his side post 257/9 on the board. For Bangladesh, Taskin Ahmed and Hasan Mahmud picked three wickets each while Shoriful Islam bagged two wickets.

Chasing the target, Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Mohammad Naim provided their side with a decent start. However, they lost wickets at regular intervals before Mushfiqur Rahim and Towhid Hridoy stitched together 72 runs.

In the end, Towhid Hridoy got out after playing a fighting knock of 82 runs and Bangladesh were bundled out for 236. Dasun Shanaka was the hero for Sri Lanka in the bowling department as he bagged three wickets by giving away runs at an economy of 3.11. Matheesha Pathirana and Maheesh Theekshana also got three wickets each while Dunith Wellalage picked up one wicket.

We didn’t bowl particularly well – Shakib Al Hasan

During the post-match presentation ceremony, Shakib Al Hasan said that his bowlers didn’t perform well in the match. He said:

“I thought it was a good toss to win at the start. We didn’t bowl particularly well. Credit to SL for the way they handled the new ball.”

Shakib Al Hasan further lauded Sadeera Samarawickrama and Towhid Hridoy for their heroics with the bat. Shakib Al Hasan said:

“Sadeera took the game away from us. 260 on that wicket – we needed a partnership at the start. There was help for the bowlers – both spinners and seamers. Our top four didn’t get enough. He batted really well (Hridoy). He played LPL here. Had a good tournament.”

Shakib Al Hasan signed off by speaking about his pace bowlers’ performance in the match. Shakib Al Hasan said:

“There are lots of ifs and buts you can talk about. We tried our best. Seamers were a bit on the expensive side but they picked up all the wickets so we can’t complain there.”