We panicked - Taskin Ahmed

■ Milan's run out and Janith's catch were the turning points - Hasaranga

- By Sa'adi Thawfeeq

FAST bowler Taskin Ahmed said that after the run out of Najmul Hossain which came out from nowhere, Bangladesh panicked and buckled under pressure to lose the first ODI against Sri Lanka at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium by 77 runs on Wednesday.

"After that great start, we were a bit relaxed. Everything was going our way, and suddenly, that run-out and one of our set batters, Tanzid, got out. Then we panicked a bit. We didn’t play our natural game, and under pressure, we collapsed," said Taskin at the post-match press conference.

"Statswise, this is a very low-scoring ground, especially if you bat second, and there is a high chance you lose the game. Still, this game was in our hands, and we could have done a bit better. Seven wickets for five runs was unexpected. We had a great start, but after that... tough loss for us."

"That [Wanindu] Hasaranga over when Najmul (Hossain) got run out followed by Tanzid’s (Hasan) dismissal, those two wickets in one over were the turning point."