Sri Lanka head coach Chris Silverwood revealed that they were disappointed for not having been able to push Bangladesh and capitalize on the position they were in on the opening day of the second test.
Sri Lanka’s head coach Chris Silverwood revealed that they were disappointed for not having been able to push Bangladesh and capitalize on the position they were in on the opening day of the second Test in Mirpur on Monday.
Sri Lank had cut down Bangladesh to 24 for 5 inside seven overs. However, Mushfiqur Rahim and Liton Das saved the Bangladesh side by playing an outstanding inning. Mushfiqur was unbeaten on 115 While Liton Das was not out on 135 as they made a record 253 runs partnership for the sixth wicket to end the day in a safe position.
“Obviously, it is disappointing to not push on from the start we got,”
said Silverwood.
“I thought we exploited the early movement fantastically well. The two-seam bowlers were exceptional again, in their discipline, and the way they asked the batter the questions. Unfortunately, we didn’t back it up after that. From there on, we gave away a lot of scoring opportunities. When we did force an error, we didn’t take that catch. It would have made a huge difference. It proved very costly to us.
“I think it is a good wicket to bat on. There was some movement in the first hour. There’s a little bit of spin. I don’t think we bowled particularly well after that start. We have to be honest with that. We (spinners) could have bowled a lot better but it is something we will talk about in the dressing room. I think we need to bowl much better line and lengths. We gave too many balls away to hit. That’s something we have to work hard on to rectify. There’s no point hiding from it.”
Silverwood said that he was impressed with the discipline of the pace bowlers as they proved to be a major factor in both Tests.
“It does (give us hope) and in my second game in charge, I am having a good look at what we have got, and what we haven’t got. It does give me a lot of hope in the fact that in a very short period, we have managed to instill discipline in the seam bowlers so that they can make a difference.
“Whether it is attacking the off-stump or bowling short. It worked in the last game and created an opportunity in this game. But we didn’t take (it). It does give me a lot of hope. There’s room for improvement but we have to do it quickly. It is something that excites me.
“The strange thing is that with two quick wickets tomorrow, the game comes alive again. We have to make sure we hit our straps tomorrow morning, to get early wickets and keep ourselves in the game,”
he said.