Najmul Hossain Shanto scored his second century of the match as Bangladesh declared on 285 for six on Saturday to set Sri Lanka a challenging target of 296 in 37 overs on the final day of the first Test in Galle.
The Bangladesh captain brought up the milestone in unorthodox fashion with a reverse sweep for a single off debutant Tharindu Rathnayake to join an exclusive club of players to score centuries in both innings of a Test.
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Shanto’s undefeated 125 came after a commanding 148 in the first innings.
It was the second time he had achieved the feat, his first coming against Afghanistan in 2023. Mominul Haque is the only other Bangladesh player to have scored centuries in both innings of a Test.
However, questions could be asked about the timing of Bangladesh’s declaration.
With the clock ticking and only 37 overs left in the day, the tourists may rue not ending their innings sooner to give themselves more time to attack Sri Lanka’s top order.
Rain spoiled the morning session, with Bangladesh resuming at 177-3. They had slowly reached 237-4 when it began raining, with Mushfiqur Rahim the only casualty of a truncated first session.
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Mushfiqur fell one short of a half-century, seeking a quick single with a nudge to mid-on only to see Rathnayake swoop in and throw down the stumps with a direct hit.
An early lunch was taken and further showers delayed the restart. It didn’t take long for Rathnayake — this time bowling left-arm orthodox — to make his mark when play resumed.
In the first over after the restart, the ambidextrous spinner found sharp turn to hit Litton Das’s off stump with a delivery that had the right-hander groping.
He struck again soon after when Jaker Ali danced down the pitch only to be beaten in flight and stumped.
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