Bangladesh celebrated their 100th Test match with a memorable win over Sri Lanka on the fifth day of the second Test at the P Sara Oval in Colombo on Sunday. Tamim Iqbal scored 82 as Bangladesh chased down the target of 191 with four wickets in hand, recording their ninth Test victory in seventeen years and only their fourth away win. The series, hence, finished 1-1 with Sri Lanka winning the first Test in Galle.

Resuming at 268/8 overnight, Dilruwan Perera and Suranga Lakmal continued to frustrate Bangladesh as they pushed 150 and dangerously close to 200. The partnership touched 80 before Bangladesh finally got a double-break: Perera was run out for 50 and Shakib Al Hasan had Lakmal next over. Sri Lanka were bowled out for 319, giving Bangladesh a target of 191.

But their chase was immediately plunged into chaos due to a Rangana Herath double-strike. The Sri Lankan captain struck in two balls to remove Soumya Sarkar and Imrul Kayes to leave Bangladesh in all sorts of trouble at 22/2. But opener Tamil Iqbal and Sabbir Rahman went on the counter-attack, smashing Sri Lanka’s spinners off their lines. They put on a huge 109-run partnership with Iqbal especially looking in pristine touch before he threw away his wicket, trying to go down the ground and holing out to Dinesh Chandimal at long-on.

Perera then got the other danger man, Sabbir Rahman, getting him trapped in front after he missed a sweep and then went got a good review.

This brought out Bangladesh’s two senior-most players, Shakib Al Hasan and captain Mushfiqur Rahim, to the crease who safely weathered the storm and took Bangladesh to 156/4 at tea. There was more tension in the last session as Shakib played on to Perera, the bail only falling off after, what seemed an eternity, and Rahim overturning a leg-before decision.

Mosaddek Hossain was then dropped by Herath in a tough caught-and-bowled chance before he went inside-out next ball to hit a boundary and took the runs required below 20. Hossain and Rahim went on the offensive and got their runs through boundaries before, with 2 runs to get, Hossain edged behind.

But Mehedi Hasan Miraz sweeped Herath and got the vital two runs required to give Bangladesh a historic win and level the series 1-1.

Brief scores:

Bangladesh 467 (Shakib Al Hasan 116, Mosaddek Hossain 75; Rangana Herath 4/82, Lakshan Sandakan 4/142) and 191/6 (Tamim Iqbal 82, Sabbir Rahman 41; Dilruwan Perera 3/59, Rangana Herath 3/75) beat Sri Lanka 338 (Dinesh Chandimal 138, Niroshan Dickwella 34; Mehedi Hasan 3/90, Mustafizur Rahman 2/50) and 319 (Dimuth Karunaratne 126, Dilruwan Perera 50; Shakib Al Hasan 4/74, Mustafizur Rahman 3/78) by four wickets