Rajitha, concussion sub, brings SL back into the contest

Coming off the bench as a concussion substitute, pacer Kasun Rajitha has brought Sri Lanka back into the contest against Bangladesh following lunch on the third day of their first Test at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chattogram today. 

Bangladesh lost three wickets in quick succession in the session but the Tigers consolidated through a 36-run stand between Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur Rahim as they managed to reach 220 for three at Tea.

However, Tamim, who has batted for three sessions in the scorching heat in Chattogram, was seemingly suffering from a cramp. But the southpaw carried on as he remained unbeaten on 133 off 217 deliveries with Mushfiqur not out 14 off 36 deliveries at the other end. 

Rajitha, who replaced pacer Vishwa Fernando as a like-for-like substitution, struck in his very first over when he removed Najmul Hossain Shanto. He drew the batter forward with an outside off delivery that held its line enough to induce an edge off the willow of the left-hander. 
   
Later, Rajitha went through the defenses of Bangladesh skipper Mominul Haque with an angling in delivery as the Tigers went from 162 for no loss to 184 for three soon after Lunch. 

Rajitha has so far accounted for two wickets giving away just 13 runs in five overs that included a maiden. 

Tamim Iqbal, who has brought up his 10th Test ton and is approaching the landmark of 5000 Test runs, has also survived a dropped catch as Bangladesh go through a challenging period in the Chattogram Test. 

Tamim, who has been very commanding in his drives throughout the Test, slashed hard at a Ramesh Mendis delivery, managing only a thick outside edge. The ball went quickly over the head of Dhananjaya de Silva at first slip as he could only manage to get a hand to it.