Sri Lanka, Bangladesh to continue to trade punches

SRI Lanka and Bangladesh will trade punches with the hope of putting maximum points on the board when they meet in the second Test of the ICC World Test Championship new cycle (2025-27) commencing at the SSC grounds today.

- By Sa'adi Thawfeeq

It was Bangladesh who came out on top in the drawn first Test played at Galle that saw both teams share the 8 points.

Playing at home it is imperative that Sri Lanka grab the maximum points if they are to make any impact in the WTC over the next two years.

Captain Dhananjaya de Silva has emphasised on that, but at Galle it didn’t quite work out that way and Sri Lanka ran second best.

"The plan is to take 20 wickets to win the game. It is very important to get the bowling combination right. What I mean is whether we are going to have the extra seamer or extra spinner," said De Silva looking ahead at today's game.

"We had a chat with the bowlers. We knew we lost the grip on the first day at Galle. The bowlers didn't do much wrong but Bangladesh batted for a lot of overs. That gap was vital and that is why we couldn't get a result in the game. If you take history, pace has taken about 70 percent of Bangladeshi wickets. But on a pitch like Galle it is tough for pace to make a mark. We have named 12 players. The weather is changing constantly. We want to play three pacies here but we will take a look at the wicket and make a decision tomorrow morning. We need to get a good total to put them under pressure.”