Lanka sweep abject Tigers

Is there anyone interested to know the details of the mismatch at the Sylhet International Stadium yesterday that Sri Lanka won by a massive 75 runs against a hopelessly out-of-sorts Bangladesh? Not really. Most of the passionate cricket followers in this part of the world were not even bothered to watch the full length of the game that was telecast live.

For those who stayed tuned till Danushka Gunathilaka had Abu Jayed stumped to take the last Bangladesh wicket at 135 in 18.4 overs, they would have definitely felt one last pinch to a deep wound that will last a long time. Gunathilaka did a snake dance mocking Bangladesh left-arm spinner Nazmul Islam and in the Sri Lanka dugout Chandika Hathurusingha was framed at his most radiant.

The victory capped off a remarkable turnaround for Sri Lanka after a listless 2017 as they completed a clean sweep of series against Bangladesh under coach Hathurusingha, who is leading the Lankans for the first time since deserting Bangladesh following the South Africa tour late last year. It is as if Hathurusingha has taken the magic wand with him after leading Bangladesh to so many wins in his three-year tenure with the Tigers.

Yesterday's win sealed a 2-0 T20I series sweep for Sri Lanka. They also won the ODI tri-series final against Bangladesh and clinched the two-match Test series 1-0 in the month-long tour.

Bangladesh came out in the final game to salvage some pride at a venue which was hosting the Tigers for the first time. But they disappointed the packed audience who had little to cheer after Sri Lanka posted a massive 210 for four with opener Kusal Mendis hitting a sublime 42-ball 70. His 98-run opening stand with Gunathilaka not only mocked Bangladesh's decision to bowl first but also set the platform for a huge total. Gunathilaka, who was dropped twice, scored a 37-ball 42. The big-hitting Thisara Perera came up in the batting order and made sure the momentum was maintained with a 17-ball 37 while Shanaka provided the perfect finish with an 11-ball 30.

Bangladesh, with a history of successful chases not exceeding 165, were never in the hunt after losing three wickets for 22 runs in three overs. Soumya Sarkar, who hit a half-century in the first game in Dhaka, scored a four-ball duck. Mushfiqur Rahim scored six and Mohammed Mithun, who came in place of Zakir Hasan, departed for five. Tamim Iqbal scored 26 and skipper Mahmudullah scored the team-highest 41. But those efforts were not enough to scale a mountain.

Bangladesh made four changes from the first game. Tamim returned after sitting out the first game in Dhaka due to a stiff left arm. Local boy Jayed made his international debut, wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammed Mithun, a surprise entrant, and young off-spinning all-rounder Mahedi Hasan also made his international debut. Sabbir Rahman was dropped along with Afif Hossain , Zakir Hasan and Rubel Hossain.

The selectors kept faith in young pace bowling all-rounder Mohammad Saifuddin, but he disappointed with the ball again, conceding 46 runs in his four overs. Even an otherwise dependable Mustafizur Rahman was expensive, conceding 39 runs in his four overs. His last over produced four boundaries, three on the trot, and yielded 17 runs.

Only left-arm spinner Nazmul earned some respect from the Sri Lankans. He gave away 28 runs in his four overs.

Bangladesh will embark on a more challenging tri-nation T20 tournament in Sri Lanka next month which will feature India as the other team. The Bangladesh Cricket Board resorted to a makeshift arrangement after the sudden departure of Hathurusingha. The board president publicly preached that senior players are good enough to mentor the team in the interim. But after the first major home disappointment post-Hathurusingha, the BCB boss will certainly sing a different song. We do not need to wait long for the BCB boss to come out with something different sooner or later.