Zimbabwe and Bangladesh Tour update

In the midst of an international cricket quiet period, the minnows of the full member nations are battling it out in a bottom of the table clash.

After Zimbabwe won the first test match by 335 runs, Bangladesh retaliated by winning the second by 143 runs, and thus drawing the series.

The ODI series began a couple of days ago, which is extremely pivotal for these two sides. Bangladesh who have played well of late with a 1-2 defeat to Sri Lanka, and a 3-2 win over the West Indies, come in as heavy favourites. Zimbabwe were thoroughly outplayed by the West Indies, but should put up more of a fight in home conditions.If Bangladesh win all three matches they will overtake New Zealand into 8th place in the ICC ODI Rankings. Anything other than a cleansweep will mean they will remain in 9th. Zimbabwe on the other hand languish in 10th, and although they will still be 10th at the end of this series, they have a lot to play for. Ireland lurk in 11th, and Zimbabwe will want to prove they deserve to be ahead of the associate nation.

As I said, the first match was played a couple of days ago and it was Bangladesh coming out on top by 121 runs. The second match is underway at the moment.

Scores in brief

2nd ODI (in progress)
Zimbabwe 167/4 off 34.3 overs
Bangladesh 252/9 off 50.0 overs
Zimbabwe need 86 runs with 6 wickets in hand and 15.3 overs (5.54 req. run rate)

1st ODI 
Bangladesh (269/8 off 50.0 overs) defeated Zimbabwe (148 off 32.1 overs) by 121 runs

2nd Test
Bangladesh (391 and 291/9dec.) defeated Zimbabwe (282 and 257) by 143 runs

1st Test
Zimbabwe (389 and 227/7dec.) defeated Bangladesh (134 and 147) by 335 runs

On to the second test!

After Zimbabwe smashed Bangladesh by 335 runs in the first test, the visitors will be looking to bounce back in the second test at the same venue. Zimbabwe meanwhile will be hoping to record a clean-sweep series victory which will give them some much needed confidence after being thoroughly outplayed in the West Indies.

Bangladesh were incredibly disappointing in the first match only making a total of 281 runs across both innings. As a comparison Brendan Taylor made 273 (for 1 I might add). Robiul Islam though collected 9 wickets (including a 6-for in the second innings), in the process becoming the first Bangladeshi paceman to get a five-wicket haul for three years. It really was an impressive performance by Robiul.  Nonetheless as a team Bangladesh came into this tour with their batsmen in some form and the favourites tag placed on them. This was due to them showing some encouraging signs in their recent test sightings against West Indies and Sri Lanka,  If they don't win this second test, you get a sense that it has been one step forward and then two steps back for the tigers.

As I mentioned before Brendan Taylor scored a combined 273 runs. He hit a ton in each innings with his 171 in the first innings being the highest score by a Zimbabwe captain. After a thoroughly disappointing tour to the West Indies only last month, he has come out and reminded the cricket world the talent that he possesses. Without Taylor, only Malcolm Waller scored above 50, so it shows just how important his innings was.

There have been numerous changes made for the second test, with four for Bangladesh. Tamim Iqbal has been rushed back from his injury layoff, while Mominul Haque, debutant Ziaur Rahman and Sajidul Islam (first test in five years) have been drafted in. Mahmudullah after some poor form of late, Shahriar Nafees, Enamul Haque jnr and Rubel Hossain make way. For the home side batsman Regis Chakabva comes in for make-shift opener Timycen Maruma who apparently suffered a knee injury.

Score update:
Lunch Day 2
Zimbabwe 1/0 (1.0 over)
Bangladesh 391 (113.2 overs)

After Zimbabwe won the toss and bowling, Bangladesh have just been bowled out for a good score of 391. Current captain Mushfiqur (81) and the former captain, Shakib (81) steadied the ship after some disappointing stroke-play from the top-order batsmen. Elton Chigumbura took 3 wickets for the home side, while improving paceman Kyle Jarvis struggled at over four an over.

Bangladesh implode on Day 3 of first test

Bangladesh have imploded on Day 3 of the first test match in Harare to be all out for 134. At 102/1 things were looking quite positive with opener Jahrurul Islam on 43 and Mohammad Ashraful at the crease. What followed was a horrendous capitulation. In fact, that's probably an understatement.In the next 19 overs, 9 wickets fell for 32 runs. Yes, that's 32/9. After being 95/1 at stumps that's a loss of 39/9 for Day 3. After lunch there were four wickets for no runs in only 19 deliveries. Just when I thought Bangladesh were on the improve and these kind of collapses were behind them they pull out this. It was probably one of the worst collapses in Bangladesh's history as a test nation, and that's saying something.

Meanwhile on the flipside, Shingi Masakadza picked up four wickets in only his second test match, while impressive paceman Kyle Jarvis also took four wickets. The Zimbabwean bowlers did bowl quite well, but good enough to take 9 wickets for so few runs - no.

This quite remarkable Day 3 comes on the back of an interesting first couple of days which featured the home side making an impressive 389. Captain Brendan Taylor spearheaded the innings with the highest score by a Zimbabwe captain of 171. It truly was an incredible knock. Malcolm Waller played well for his 55. For the Bangladeshi bowlers Enamul Haque jnr bowled 47 overs for his three wickets, while fast bowlers Robiul Islam and Rubel Hossain took five wickets between them. Bangladesh then started their innings really well in positive fashion late on Day 2, and as I said were 95/1 at stumps. We all know what happened though the morning after!

Current State of play:
Zimbabwe lead Bangladesh by 255 runs
Bangladesh 134
Zimbabwe 389

Zimbabwe have chosen not to enforce the follow on, which means they will bat again in search of posting a total that is out of the away team's reach.

Battle of the lightweights

Yes, there is actually a test series about to begin. No, it may not be up to the calibre of the Ashes or the no.1 ranked South Africans, but it will be an intriguing contest. I'm of course talking about the Bangladesh tour of Zimbabwe. Despite the majority of the cricket world being absorbed by the IPL, these two nations have a lot to play for. For the traditionalists out there (me included), it is still test cricket, and any matches that we can get in this age of schedules filled with T20, is wonderful.

There is definitely pride at stake in this short two test match series (As an aside, I really it was 3 matches, but with Zimbabwe Cricket in financial ruin, I guess I can understand). Since Zimbabwe's re-introduction into test cricket in 2011, their only win has come against the tigers. Bangladesh were beaten comprehensively on that tour also losing the ODI series to the home side. This time Bangladesh will be out for revenge and wanting to prove to the cricket world that they are the better side and should not be pigeonholed as a "minnow" with Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe have just come back from West Indies where they were thoroughly outplayed in the test series, losing it 0-2. That was their first test l cricket assignment though in over 12 months, so their performance can be forgiven somewhat. However now that they blown some of the cobwebs out, they really need to play well in these two matches. If Zimbabwe are going to get a test match win in the near future, this is undoubtedly their best opportunity.

Bangladesh meanwhile have played well of late, as they managed to draw a test in the series against Sri Lanka. Impressive showings from their batsmen especially, will mean they will have high hopes from this tour. Bangladesh cannot simply afford to lose (or even draw this series). They have started to take some encouraging steps in the last six months, and they need to stamp their authority on Zimbabwe. They need to show the world that they are a much better side than the African nation.

Even talking about the rankings seems pointless for these two sides as Bangladesh are stuck on the bottom of the table with only 1 point, while Zimbabwe are unranked having played an insufficient number of matches. I'm not sure on how many more games they require to play in order to be ranked, but currently on points they would be ahead of Bangladesh (solely due to their win in 2011).

Squads:
Zimbabwe (1st test): B.Taylor (c), E.Chigumbura, G.Cremer, K.Jarvis, T.Maruma, H.Masakadza, S.Masakadza, R.Mutumbami, K.Meth, V.Sibanda, M.Waller 

Bangladesh: M.Rahim (c), E.Haque jnr, J.Islam, Mahmudullah, M.Ashraful, M.Haque, N.Hossain, R.Islam, R.Hossain, S.Islam, S.Hossain, S.Nafees, S. Al Hasan, S.Gazi, T.Iqbal

Zimbabwe have had plenty of issues with their squad with a dispute over winter contracts which left batsman Craig Ervine choosing to play club cricket in England instead. Bangladesh welcome back Shakib al Hasan, although he will only bat in the first test, while Tamim is not likely to be fit until the second test.

Fixtures:
1st Test: 17-21st April
2nd Test: 25th-29th April
*Both matches are being played at Harare Sports Club.

I am hoping for a closely fought series, although the home advantage will definitely help Zimbabwe. Nonetheless with Bangladesh's impressive recent form and their experience over their rivals, I am predicting a 2-0 series win for them.

Test Rankings Update

With the New Zealand and England series ending the other day in an incredible draw, there is now a bit of a break until the next test assignments. Zimbabwe do host Bangladesh in April for a two test match series in a bottom of the table clash, but for the test purists, they will have to wait until May for any substantial action.

With this in mind, I thought now would be a good time to reflect on each team's form in the past five months (since November) and their current positions on the ranking table. I'll also detail the test series which will be played later this year.

South Africa
8 matches
6 wins 2 draws 0 losses
Captain Graeme Smith has just received the test mace and the $450,000 cheque that goes along with it. They thoroughly deserve these accolades as they have comprehensively beaten all team that they have played. The critical series against Australia in Australia was a challenge but a superb performance at the WACA sealed a hard fought 1-0 win. Their home summer was flawless with a 2-0 and 3-0 thumping of New Zealand and Pakistan respectively.

India
8 matches
5 wins 1 draw 2 losses
All of India's 8 matches have been played at home, and their results can be split into two categories. Their 1-2 defeat to England was disappointing and it showed that they had some things to address. Meanwhile their 4-0 hammering of Australia, although helped by the implosion of Australia, showed that they are still a force to be reckoned with in their home conditions.

West Indies
4 matches
4 wins 0 draws 0 losses
These results look sensational, but some context is needed. Their matches were played against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. So they were expected to win these four matches, but the ruthlessness they displayed at times is a sign that West Indies may be on a significant rise in test cricket.

Australia
10 matches
3 wins 2 draws 5 losses
Australia have come through an incredible rough trot after being hammered by India. Players being sent home, selection inconsistencies an rumoured player unrest have destabilized the team. The retirements of Ponting and Hussey would not have helped. All this was on the back of a decent home summer with a narrow 0-1 loss to the South Africans and a 3-0 cleansweep of Sri Lanka.

England
7 matches
2 wins 4 draws 1 loss 
England's win over India was a historic achievement and they thoroughly deserved their win with some outstanding performances. They have crashed back to Earth though, with a 0-0 draw against New Zealand. They were only one wicket away from losing the series, which would have been a major disappointment for England.

Sri Lanka
7 matches
2 wins 1 draw 4 losses
Sri Lanka's form has not been good, and there are signs that they may be on a downward trend in test cricket (their board's cancelling of tests will not help this). They were upset by New Zealand in Sri Lanka to draw the series 1-1, and were completely outplayed by Australia down under. The fact that they could only just beat Bangladesh shows where they are at.

New Zealand
7 matches
1 win 3 draws 3 losses
Despite only 1 win from the past 7 matches, things are starting to turn around for New Zealand. Their win in Sri Lanka was amazing, although was overshadowed by the Ross Taylor captaincy saga. Despite being smashed by South Africa, their performance against England showed that they have some good players coming through the ranks.

Bangladesh
4 matches
0 wins 1 draw 3 losses 
Bangladesh's form has actually been quite impressive. They posted their then highest test score in the first match against the West Indies and should have probably won that game. Their draw in the first match against Sri Lanka (while making 638) was a major highlight for them.

Pakistan
3 matches
0 wins 0 draws 3 losses
Pakistan have only played the one series which was against South Africa away. They were destroyed by the no.1 side with a real low-light coming when they were bowled out for 49 in the first test.

Zimbabwe
2 matches
0 wins 0 draws 2 losses
Zimbabwe played tests for the first time in over a year with a series away against West Indies. As expected they were brushed aside with relative ease, but the experience shall be good for them.

Some statistics from this in general are:
30 matches played (over the last 5 months)
2 four match series
4 three match series
5 two match series
Thought I'd include this breakdown as I really hate two match series. Who wouldn't have loved an extra match between Sri Lanka and New Zealand or even between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, giving Bangladesh the opportunity to play for a drawn series.

Of the 30 matches played, 7 have been drawn, which is around 23%. I reckon most of these were on roads of pitches. Adelaide comes to mind, as does matches played in Sri Lanka and New Zealand.

The current rankings are as follows: (up to date as of now)

1 - South Africa    128
2 - England           114
3 - India                112
4 - Australia         110
5 - Pakistan          104
6 - Sri Lanka         92
7 - West Indies      92
8 - New Zealand   83
9 -  Bangladesh      1

The divide between South Africa and the rest is really prominent now, and really proves just how dominant they have been over the past five months. Australia have slipped from nearly being no.1 to now down to no.4. While West Indies have improved their ranking to 92 and are now within striking distance of leap-frogging Sri Lanka into 6th position. Bangladesh picked up a ranking point, while Zimbabwe are still unranked, although they could find themselves on the table after the Bangladesh series.

Test Calendar for the rest of 2013:
April: Zimbabwe VS Bangladesh (Zimbabwe) - 2 match series
May: England VS New Zealand (England) - 2 match series
July/August: West Indies VS Pakistan (West Indies) - 2 match series
July/August: England VS Australia (England) - 5 match series
October: Bangladesh VS New Zealand (Bangladesh) - 2 match series
October: Zimbabwe VS Sri Lanka (Zimbabwe) - 2 match series
October: Pakistan VS South Africa (UAE) - 2/3 match series
November - January: Australia VS England (Australia) - 5 match series
December/January: South Africa VS India (South Africa) - 3/4 match series
December/January: New Zealand VS West Indies (New Zealand) - 3 match series
December/January: Pakistan VS Sri Lanka (UAE) - 3 match series

The two Ashes series are the main highlight, although Australia's problems could mean the series' aren't as closely fought as everyone would like. All the other nations are left to pick up the scraps with a glut of two match series. Although there is hope that Pakistan could play South Africa in a three match series, while Cricket South Africa are considering a four match series against India. The Bangladesh VS New Zealand series should be closely fought with the improvement of Bangladesh.

Let's hope for some exciting matches as well as some brilliant individual performances. On a side note it will be interesting to see whether Sachin Tendulkar continues playing, as India do not play another test series until South Africa in December. 

Bangladesh draw series against Sri Lanka

Bangladesh 184/7 (26.0 overs) defeated Sri Lanka 302/9 (183)
by 3 wickets (Duckworth- Lewis Method)

Bangladesh have drawn their ODI series against Sri Lanka overnight with an upset three wicket win overnight. Sri Lanka started off at a quick pace with Kusal Perera and Dilshan putting on 116 for the first wicket. Kumar Sangakkara came in and make a run a ball 48, while Dilshan continued on to hit his 16th ODI hundred - 125*. Bangladesh though recovered and managed to restrict the rest of the Sri Lankan batsmen. Abdur Razzak was the chief destroyer with a five wicket haul, in the process becoming the first Bangladeshi player to take 200 ODI wickets. Although Sri Lanka would have been slightly disappointed at their inability to compose a bigger score, they would still have been confident in defending 302.

Bangladesh, similar to Sri Lanka, made an impressive start with openers Anamul Haque and Mohammad Ashraful putting on 77 in 12.5 overs. Shortly after though the rain came, which forced the involvement of Duckworth and Lewis. After a significant rain of delay, the target was reduced to 183 off 27 overs. The batsmen seemed to lose some composure after this with regular wickets falling. Nasir Hossain (newly promoted to no.5) maintained his cool though with 33* to steer the chase. On a side note, Nasir is really starting to find his place in this team and a permanent promotion up the order may be in order. He now averages 43 in ODI's, as well as an impressive 44 in test cricket. Malinga, Matthews and Senanayake each took apiece, with the other wicket being a run-out. 

This was Bangladesh's first win against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka. A remarkable achievement for them and continuation of a pretty positive tour for the visitors. The last match of the tour is a single T20I which is to be played on Saturday.

Full scorecard here on Cricinfo: http://www.espncricinfo.com/sri-lanka-v-bangladesh-2013/engine/match/602476.html

World Cricket Live Update

Apologies for the break in posts so below I have summarised the most recent results on the international cricket scene:

• New Zealand and England drew Test Series 0-0
• India whitewashed Australia 4-0 to end a horrendous tour for the visitors
• Sri Lanka secured a 1-0 series victory in their home test series against Bangladesh
• Sri Lanka lead their ODI series against the same team 1-0 with one match to play, after the second encounter was rained out
• West Indies completed their series whitewash with a 2-0 result in the test matches, after a 3-0 and 2-0 win in the ODI and T20I series respectively
• South Africa won the deciding game to seal a close ODI series with Pakistan 3-2

 

• Ireland clean-swept their tour of the UAE with a win in their Intercontinental Cup match, two World Cup Qualifiers and single T20I
• Kenya won both both WCL Championship matches against Canada, as well as the first class match, while the T20I series was drawn 1-1
• Scotland were smashed by Afghanistan with the Afganistan team winning the two WCQ's, the Intercontinental Cup match and the two T20I's

Bangladesh secure first test draw against Sri Lanka

Bangladesh have secured their first draw in a test match against Sri Lanka. People may think, oh wow, a draw, tell me when they win a match. However looking at Bangladesh's test record, (before this match) it doesn't take you long to work out that this has been an immense achievement.

75 matches
3 wins
65 losses
7 draws

Those wins have come against Zimbabwe and a weakened West Indies side. The draws have been against India, West Indies, New Zealand and Zimbabwe. In fact their only draw in a non-interrupted match has been against Zimbabwe. Therefore this result could be considered one of their best ever, as corrected by Cricinfo reporter Mohammad Isam. (http://www.espncricinfo.com/sri-lanka-v-bangladesh-2013/content/current/story/624731.html)

Angelo Matthews actually declared late on the final day setting Bangladesh a target of 268 in around 37 overs. Even Bangladesh realised that it was not worth chasing this total, perhaps learning from their fifth day capitulation against West Indies last November. Sri Lanka did manage to pick up one wicket, but even Bangladesh would not have had collapsed on the Galle pitch.

In relation to the pitch, some people may say Bangladesh's achievement should be discredited because of it. I disagree with this as even on roads before, Bangladesh have been totally outclassed and lost by innings, so for them to secure a draw is a good step. Nonetheless I do agree that this type of pitch is bad for test cricket. In fact it is horrible for test cricket. Test cricket to survive needs "result" pitches that offer a good balance between bat and ball. The pitch in Galle was terrible and hopefully will never be produced like that again.

The next (and final test unfortunately, man I hate 2 test series) starts on Saturday.

Full scorecard from the 1st test: http://www.espncricinfo.com/sri-lanka-v-bangladesh-2013/engine/match/602472.html

World Cricket Live Update

Plenty of cricket going on at the moment so here is an update on live world cricket!

1st Test: New Zealand VS England 
Match Drawn
New Zealand 460 drew with England 167 and 421/6
England despite being dominated by New Zealand in the first test have managed to hold on for a draw. After letting New Zealand get a lead of 293, England came back strong with both openers Cook and Compton scoring centuries. For Compton it was his first test century and would have helped silence some of the doubters. Nightwatchman Steven Finn managed to stick around the next morning to make his highest test (and first-class) score of 56. Trott also contributed and made 52. Neil Wagner again impressed with a three wicket haul. If the first day wasn't washed out, New Zealand would have really had a great chance to push for a win. Nonetheless they would be impressed with the way they played. England would be happy that they managed to escape with a draw after their inept batting display in the first innings. With the series still 0-0, the next test starts on the 14th.

Full scorecard here: http://www.espncricinfo.com/new-zealand-v-england-2013/engine/current/match/569243.html

1st ODI: South Africa VS Pakistan
South Africa won by 125 runs
South Africa 315/4 and Pakistan 190 
Apologies for not posting a series preview for this; I just haven't had the time. In summary for South Africa it is an important series as it is their last major matches before the Champions Trophy. After their loss to New Zealand they will be hoping for an improved performance. They have slipped to 4th in the rankings so will be hoping to get back near the top. For Pakistan they will be hoping to put on a better show after a 3-0 whitewash in the test series. They are ranked in 6th in ODI's and they will be also be wanting to put in a good performance ahead of the Champions Trophy in a few months.

Back to this match, and South Africa really dominated. They piled up 315/4 off their 50 overs with Colin Ingram making an unbeaten 105*. De Villiers made a run a ball 65. They took their batting powerplay immediately in the 11th over which was a nice change from the usual in ODI cricket of wating until the 36th over. Pakistan were never really in the hunt and were struck out for 190 in 36.2 overs. Rory Kleinveldt took four wickets in a good spell.

The next match is in four days.

Full scorecard here: http://www.espncricinfo.com/south-africa-v-pakistan-2013/engine/current/match/567368.html

1st Test: Sri Lanka VS Bangladesh
Bangladesh lead Sri Lanka by 27 runs
Bangladesh 638 and Sri Lanka 570/4dec and 41/1

On the road of a pitch in Galle, Bangladesh piled up their highest test score of 638. Mohammad Ashraful could not go on to make a double (he was dismissed on 190), but it was his captain Mushfiqur Rahim who did going on to make an exact 200. It really was a unbelievable innings and he became the first Bangladesh batsman in test history to score a double century. Nasir Hossain coming in at no.7 picked up where Ashraful left off and even managed to score a ton himself. The Sri Lankan bowlers were ineffective but they did manage to restrict Bangladesh's lead to 68.

Shahadat Hossain has picked up the early wicket of Karunaratne but unless something unthinkable happens this test will end up drawn.

Current scorecard and Cricinfo commentary here: http://www.espncricinfo.com/sri-lanka-v-bangladesh-2013/engine/current/match/602472.html

1st ODI: Kenya VS Canada
Canada 227/8 (50.0 overs)
Both of these teams lie in the bottom three of the World Cricket League Championship. Although it is still mathematically possible, it is virtually impossible for these teams to finish in the top two to automatically qualify for the World Cup. In all honesty both Kenya and Canada will need to focus on keeping their ODI status by finishing in the top four of next year's Cricket World Cup qualifier, or even by just finishing in the top eight and keeping their High Performance Program funding.

Canada managed to score 227/8 on the back of a 72 by opening batsman Ruvindu Gunasekera. Raza-ur-Rehman also scored a 70 in his ODI debut. Elijah Otieno picked up 4/33, while Nelson Odhiambo secured two wickets, including of dangerous batsman Rizwan Cheema for 2. Kenya will like their chances of chasing down the total, but it will be close.

Full scorecard here: http://www.espncricinfo.com/wcl-championship-2011-13/engine/current/match/592266.html

Ashraful and Mushfiqur pummel Sri Lanka on Day 3

Stumps at Day 3: Bangladesh 438/4
Stumps at Day 2: Bangladesh 135/2 trailing Sri Lanka 570/4dec
Stumps at Day 1: Sri Lanka 361/3

After toiling hard in the field while the Sri Lankan batsman dominated, Bangladesh have come out and done the exact same, if not more. Two batsman in particular have owned Day 3 of this first test match. There names are Mohammad Ashraful and the captain Mushfiqur Rahim. Ashraful, once a former captain and wonder child of Bangladesh cricket, came back into the team for his umpteenth return to test cricket. With an average 22.60 many thought that he had his fair go. Including this blogger who said:

Mohammad Ashraful returns again to the national side for the umpteenth time. Let's be honest here, despite his potential shown as a youngster he is now 28. He has batted 111 times in tests for a pitiful average of 22.60. In First Class cricket he only averages a touch better with 28. He has scored some runs in domestic cricket recently, but his repetitive failures over the last 5-6 years at international level should mean a permanent line is put through his name.

Well for the time being I am eating my words. Mohammad Ashraful is unbeaten at stumps on Day 3 on 189*. He has faced an unbelievable 398 balls and has been at the crease since the score was 23/1. Ash as he is commonly well known has beaten many records (which I'll touch on later) in this fabulous knock. His partner in crime though has been the skipper Mushfiqur Rahim who is also unbeaten on 152*. He has faced 236 balls in his excellent knock. These two batsmen have put on an unbeaten 261 run stand in 82 overs. Simply stunning! 

People may wonder why I am appearing to celebrate these achievements so much when Sri Lanka had three centurions in their first innings. The answer to that is that this is Bangladesh we are talking about. They are the perennial underachievers in world cricket and sit dead last on the Test Rankings Table with 0 ranking points. Yes, Sri Lanka had an impressive first innings and yes, this pitch makes concrete look like a minefield, but for Bangladesh to completely dominate a day of test cricket like they have just done (303/2) deserves incredible recognition and praise.

For those unaware of the Sri Lankan centurions in the first innings they were Sangakkara with 142, Thirimanne with 155* and Chandimal with 116*. Sri Lanka's innings was dominated by these three batsmen, but the Bangladesh fielding effort played a part. There were absolute sitters dropped and Chandimal was dropped numerous times in single figures. 

In the context of the game Bangladesh still trail by 132 runs with only two days left to play. The most likely result is a draw, but Bangladesh would probably like to bat for the majority of the day tomorrow to avoid batting for a second time in this match. They would ideally like to bowl at Sri Lanka on the last day with a 150-200 run lead, despite this meaning they would have to make in excess of 720. On the flipside a quick collapse tomorrow would leave a result still open for Sri Lanka and with a fifth day wicket ... who knows what will happen? 

Full scorecard here: http://www.espncricinfo.com/sri-lanka-v-bangladesh-2013/engine/current/match/602472.html

 Records/Statistics
- Highest partnership by Bangladesh (261*)
- Highest individual score by a Bangladeshi batsman
- Mohammad Ashraful's highest test score (189*) 
- Ashfraful's 398* balls faced is the highest amount by a Bangladeshi batsman in a single test innings
- Mushfiqur Rahim's highest test and first class score (152*)
- Highest fifth wicket stand against Sri Lanka by any side
- Bangladesh' highest score outside Bangladesh (416 previously)
- Ashraful has now scored five of his six centuries against Sri Lanka
- Ashraful is now the first Bangladeshi batsman to score 1000 runs against another country (1047)
- Highest partnership at Galle Cricket Ground

Impending records
- 26 runs off the highest partnership against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka
- Ashraful is 11 runs shy of being the first Bangladesh batsman to score a test double century
-  118 runs off their highest test score ever (556 against West Indies only last year)

I would imagine there would be heaps more, let me know if you know any!
 

Sri Lanka Bangladesh Test Series series preview

In the midst of high profile series' of England and New Zealand, Australia and India, this test series has flow under the radar somewhat. Despite the limited media coverage there has been no shortage of controversy and big news. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has been locked in a contract dispute with up to 20-30 top players. There were grave fears that Sri Lanka may have been forced to field a second string side reminiscent of West Indies in their series against Bangladesh in 2009. As well as this, Thilan Samaweera has retired after being left out of Sri Lanka's squad. He played 81 test matches and scored 5462 runs with an average of 48.76. He's been a great servant of Sri Lankan cricket over the years and he will be remembered for his bravery coming back from the attacks on the team bus in Pakistan.

Meanwhile back to the series both teams are suffering major injuries. For Sri Lanka Mahela Jayawardene and Nuwan Pradeep are both unavailable, but in better news Kumar Sangakkara has returned after fracturing a finger in the Boxing Day Test last year courtesy of Mitchell Johnson. Angelo Matthews will be captaining now and it will be interesting to see how he fares.

Bangladesh though have bigger omissions with World no.1 ranked all-rounder Shakib al Hasan needing surgery on his calf. His absence will leave a gigantic hole in the Bangladesh team. He is to Bangladesh what Michael Clarke is to Australia. With this spinner Enamul Haque jnr and Naeem Islam were also both ruled out with injuries. On top of this Shahriar Nafees has been ruled out due to a hand injury. Flamboyant opener Tamim Iqbal is also in doubt for the first test. Bangladesh struggle with depth on a normal day so these numerous injuries will severely test him. Mohammad Ashraful returns again to the national side for the umpteenth time. Let's be honest here, despite his potential shown as a youngster he is now 28. He has batted 111 times in tests for a pitiful average of 22.60. In First Class cricket he only averages a touch better with 28. He has scored some runs in domestic cricket recently, but his repetitive failures over the last 5-6 years at international level should mean a permanent line is put through his name.

In regards to both teams' recent test form Sri Lanka is coming off the back of a 0-3 drubbing by Australia. The real concern though was there 1-1 drawn series with New Zealand in their own home conditions. Bangladesh played West Indies in November 2012 and lost 0-2, but were incredibly close to pulling off an upset win the first match. In bilateral matches against each other Bangladesh have a terrible record against the Sri Lankans. They have played 12 test matches against each other and Sri Lanka have won all 12 of them. That is Sri Lanka 12, draws 0 and Bangladesh 0. This is undoubtedly Bangladesh's worst record against another country. Of these 12 wins 7 have been by an innings, and the closest margin has been 107 runs. Bangladesh will be looking to rectify this in this test tour, and its interesting to note that their board has introduced bonuses for players for drawing tests. That really shows just where Bangladesh is at with their test cricket.

Sri Lanka are 6th in the rankings, while Bangladesh languish in 9th with 0 rating points. They will be hoping for even a draw on this tour so they can get some points. Sri Lanka will only pick up 1 point for a 2-0 series win. They will have to be careful though as they are only 1 point above the West Indies in 7th, so any slight slip-up could be costly.

In this short two match series I really don't expect Bangladesh to put up too much of a challenge. They have been hurt by injuries to key players and the combination of an inexperienced batting line-up and very weak pace bowling will leave them vulnerable. Sri Lanka should be able to post a comfortable 2-0 series cleansweep.

Squads:
Sri Lanka: A.Matthews (c), Chandimal (vc), Dilshan, Eranga, Herath, Karunaratne, Kaushal, Kulasekara, Lakmal, Mendis, Perera, Sangakkara, Thirimanne, Vithanage, Welegedera

Bangladesh: M.Rahim (c), Mahmudullah (vc), A.Hasan, A.Haque, E.Sunny, J.Islam, M.Ayub, M.Ashraful, M.Haque, N.Hossain, R.Islam, R.Hossain, S.Hossain, S.Gazi, T.Iqbal

Fixtures:
1st Test: 8th March - 12th March @ Galle
2nd Test: 16th March - 20th March @ Colombo