Bangladesh’s Fast Bowler Acknowledges Poor Batting After 77-Run Loss to Sri Lanka in First ODI

Karachi: Bangladesh suffered a heavy defeat to Sri Lanka by 77 runs in the first ODI, with the visiting team losing 7 wickets for just 5 runs, ultimately handing Sri Lanka the advantage.
The match, played in Colombo, saw the host team setting a target of 245 runs. Bangladesh started positively, but after the fall of the second wicket at 100 runs, the batting collapse began. The team quickly lost eight wickets for just 105 runs, making the chase almost impossible.
During the collapse, Zakir Ali played a valiant knock, scoring 51 runs from 64 balls, but his efforts couldn’t save the team.
After the defeat, Bangladesh’s fast bowler, Taskin Ahmed, acknowledged that the turning point in the match came after the 17th over when Najmul Hossain Shanto was run out, followed by two more wickets falling in the 18th over. This shifted the momentum in favor of Sri Lanka.
Taskin said, “I was expecting that if we had five to seven more overs, we would win the match.” His assessment seemed accurate, as the opening pair of Tanzid Hasan and Najmul Hossain Shanto had put together a solid 96-run partnership in just 16 overs, with the team well placed to chase the target.
However, the game took a sudden turn when Bangladesh’s batting line collapsed, and they lost seven wickets in just five runs.
Taskin further admitted, “Certainly, we batted poorly in the middle phase. We made a good start with 100 runs in 16 overs, but then losing two wickets at 100 and another at 107 for 8 was very costly.”
He praised Zakir Ali for his solid batting, saying, “Zakir Ali played really well and was settling in at the crease. If we had two to three more batsmen with him, we could have won the match. But we admit we didn’t bat well; the wicket wasn’t bad, it was our failure.”
Taskin concluded, “Maybe we got nervous as wickets fell in quick succession and lost the match under pressure. We ended up losing more wickets in the process.”