Shanto shines with a calm century as Bangladesh beat Sri Lanka in first ODI

Bangladesh lost the openers early in the innings while chasing a total of 255 runs. Both Litton Das and Soumya Sarkar failed to lay a good foundation. Towhid Hridoy also failed to make an impact. Mahmudullah Riyad was doing well before falling after apparently struggling with his leg. From 23 for 3, Bangladesh were at 92 for four.

From that shaky start, Najmul Hossain Shanto and Mushfiqur Rahim guided Bangladesh to a six-wicket win in the first of the three-match ODI series on Wednesday in Chattogram.

Along the way, Shanto hit a century and remained unbeaten for 122, with Mushfiqur posting 73 off 84 balls. Both the innings played the main role in taking the game away from Sri Lanka’s reach.

Dilshan Madushanka scalped both the first wickets, and he put a huge pressure on the top order of Bangladesh, which eventually crumbled quickly. But Shanto stood firm, and he made a pair of partnerships with Mahmudullah first and then with Mushfiqur.

“The way Mahmudullah started his innings helped me a lot, after that Mushi (Mushfiqur) showed his experience- we all know how capable he is. I hope he will continue his form,” Shanto said to the broadcaster after the match.

Shanto, the left-handed batter, and Bangladesh captain looked calm and composed throughout the innings. Musfhiqur also played a big role in keeping Shanto calm and focused on his game.

Bangladeshi bowlers have also done well. Sri Lanka made a good start batting first after winning the toss on a wicket that traditionally favors the batters. But the bowlers worked hard during the middle overs and eventually bowled them out inside the 49th over.

The Bangladesh pace attack did particularly well on the tricky surface taking three wickets each.

“First of all, I believe in all the bowlers. We started with Taskin and Shoriful. They tried, but on a wicket like this, it‍‍`s hard for them,” Shanto told the broadcaster after the match. “But the way they came back, I‍‍`m really happy for them.”

Captain Kusal Mendis and Janith Liyanage hit a fifty for Sri Lanka. But their effort went in vain.