Milan Rathnayake delivered a superb spell late on Day 2 of the Galle Test match, picking up three quick wickets for Sri Lanka.
Sri Lankan pacer Milan Priyanath Rathnayake remains upbeat about his team’s prospects in the Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh 1st Test 2025 at Galle. This optimism persists despite Bangladesh’s cricket score swelling to 484/9 in their first innings by stumps on Day 2cricbuzz.com. Rathnayake believes the hosts can still take a first-innings lead, backed by a strong batting lineup ready to capitalize on the flat pitch once Bangladesh’s innings concludes.
Bangladesh Pile Up 484 on Flat Galle Pitch
Bangladesh’s batsmen dominated most of Day 2 on a batting-friendly Galle surface, posting a massive first-innings total. Najmul Hossain Shanto and Mushfiqur Rahim each struck commanding centuries, while Litton Das added a brisk ninety to put the tourists in control. Their efforts saw the Bangladesh cricket score soar, putting Sri Lanka’s bowlers under prolonged pressure on one of the flattest wickets seen at Galle. Rathnayake noted that the bowlers’ task was to remain patient: “It was one of the flattest wickets we’ve seen in Galle. The task was to keep things tight even though wickets weren’t coming. I thought we did that quite well throughout the day,” he said, crediting his team for sticking to disciplined lines.cricbuzz.com
Day 2 Highlights – Bangladesh 1st Innings:
- Mushfiqur Rahim – 163 (marathon knock anchoring the innings)cricbuzz.com
- Najmul Hossain Shanto – 148 (continued his fine form from Day 1)cricbuzz.com
- Litton Das – 90 (part of a 149-run stand with Mushfiqur Rahim)cricbuzz.com
- Bangladesh Total – 484/9 at stumps on Day 2 (first innings)cricbuzz.com
- Two century partnerships – Shanto-Rahim and Rahim-Das built century-plus stands that kept Sri Lanka on the back footcricbuzz.com.
Milan Rathnayake’s Bowling Sparks Sri Lankan Fightback
The hosts staged a spirited fightback in the final session on Day 2, led by Milan Rathnayake’s bowling heroics. At one stage Bangladesh were cruising at 458/4, but Rathnayake’s incisive spell triggered a collapse. He grabbed three wickets in quick succession, which changed the complexion of the gamecricbuzz.com. Fellow bowlers joined in to make inroads, and Bangladesh stumbled from a position of strength to 484/9 by the close, losing their last five wickets for just 26 runscricbuzz.com.
Rathnayake, playing only his fifth Test, expressed satisfaction at his late impact. “I’m very happy to contribute later in the day. It was a tough wicket to bowl on, but I thought we did a decent job, especially in the last hour,” he reflected after stumpscricbuzz.com. The pacer emphasized the importance of staying calm when wickets were hard to come by: “When they were building pressure and taking the attack to us, it was important to stay calm and show character. I thought after tea, we came back stronger to claim five wickets for not many,” Rathnayake added, lauding the team’s character in adversitycricbuzz.com.
Sri Lanka Aim to Seize Initiative with the Bat
Despite the daunting total, Sri Lanka’s camp is confident of mounting a strong batting reply in this Galle Test match. Rathnayake voiced faith in the hosts’ batting strength, noting that the pitch remains good for scoring. “It’s still a good wicket to bat on. We hope to knock them [the last wicket] off quickly tomorrow and then bat well. We have a very strong batting line-up and hopefully we’ll get a lead,” he statedcricbuzz.com.
Sri Lanka will look to capitalize on the benign conditions and depth in their lineup to surpass Bangladesh’s 484 in the first innings. With momentum from the late-day bowling surge and a confident mindset, the hosts believe they can tilt the balance of the Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh 1st Test 2025 in their favor as the match progresses into Day 3.
