Sri Lanka opener Pathum Nissanka continued his fine form with back-to-back centuries against Bangladesh in the ongoing Test series. In the second Test in Colombo, the 27-year-old remained unbeaten on 146 at the end of Day 2, guiding Sri Lanka to 290/2 and a 43-run lead. With plenty of batting still to come, the hosts will look to extend their advantage on Day 3 and push Bangladesh onto the back foot in pursuit of a series-clinching win.
On Day 1, the visitors were bundled for 247 runs. Asitha Fernando and Sonal Dinusha wreak havoc, clinching three wickets each. Bangladesh once again lost early wickets, being reduced to 76/4 at one stage. Later, Mushfiqur Rahim, Litton Das, Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Taijul Islam tried to rescue the ship, but none of them could keep the scoreboard ticking. All the cricketers went back to the dressing room soon after completing 30.
Nissanka can create history
The Sri Lanka batters dominated Day 2. Opener Lahiru Udara departed for 40 runs, but that didn’t bother Nissanka, who seemed to be on song. He stitched a phenomenal partnership of 194 runs with Dinesh Chandimal, and that set the tone. Unfortunately, not Chandimal, he departed for 93 runs, missing his century by a short margin. However, Nissanka kept the scoreboard ticking.
As things stand, the opener can also create history by becoming one of the rare cricketers to have scored a double century in both ODI and Test cricket. Nissanka can join the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Chris Gayle and Rohit Sharma. The Sri Lanka international was close to the record in the first Test itself, but he departed after scoring 187 runs.
Meanwhile, the first Test ended in a draw, and the winner of the ongoing contest will seal the two-match Test series.
