The day could have finished much better for the Tigers, but the whole dressingroom was in sheer frustration at the end as the team were reduced to 231 for five from the relative ease of 227 for three, in the space of four overs.

The right-hander unnecessarily came down the track to hit Muttiah Muralidaran as he put an end to his brilliant effort after having survived twice from mistimed reverse sweeps against the spin wizard whom he negotiated well during his 131-ball salvo to score 37 runs.

Interim Bangladesh coach Shaun Williams however was not ready to come down heavily on his skipper; rather he praised his responsibility.

"He played a very responsible innings but made one mistake and got out. It was also unfortunate for him. I wouldn't make any comment about the way he got out because he worked hard today (Wednesday) and I believe he will learn from these mistakes," said Williams.

"It was nice that we batted well after a very poor showing in the first innings but we have a long way to go. I am happy because the boys responded brilliantly after that (first innings debacle)," he added.

On the other hand, Ashraful admitted that it was a crime to throw away his wicket at that very crucial stage.

"I think here lies the problem: we sometimes lose concentration. It would have been nice if Rajin bhai and I could have finished the day's play. I must accept that I was wrong to play that shot but we can learn from it. Our main target was not to lose anymore wickets today (Wednesday) and we batted according to our plan," said the youngest Bangladesh captain.

"I checked my shots after learning from the mistake in the first innings and I think our top-order showed that we can bat in the longer-version because we have got the ability but we have to show more patience and temperament," Ashraful observed.

"After my innings against India at Mirpur, (India captain) Rahul Dravid told me that I have all the shots in my grasp but it won't mean anything if I fail to bat as per the team's demand. I always recall these tips, which I think worked today," Ashraful informed.

Saleh, who echoed his captain's remarks, was also frustrated by his dismissal although he made his seventh Test half-century during his long stay in the middle.

"We should have finished the day's play because we adjusted with the nature of the wicket and were managing Murali and the other bowlers well. We had a target to play session-by-session and I think we were on track until those unnecessary dismissals," said the right-handed batsman who hails from Sylhet.

Sri Lanka's Zimbabwean coach Trevor Penny also said that it could have been a different story for Bangladesh if the two batsmen had not lost their concentration suddenly.

"It was quite impressive batting from the guys against a very good bowling attack. We bowled well today (Wednesday) but the Bangladesh batsmen gave no chance. I think they were good in (terms of) shot selection today considering their first innings performance. I must say it would have been a different story had Bangladesh finished the day with the loss of three wickets," said Penney, who played most of his cricket at Warwickshire in the English county circuit.

Bangladesh selector Akram Khan was in a riddle after contrasting performance by his team in the match.

"They showed that they have the ability. So it is unacceptable when they were dismissed for only 89 runs (in the first innings). I think responsible batting is needed," said the former Bangladesh skipper, who could smile only yesterday after two gloomy days.