Pacer Dammika Prasad ran as fast as he could while joyous teammates tried to catch up to him
for the celebration. It was the moment for Sri Lanka to breathe a sigh of relief because they apparently seemed to have survived from a scare to watch the rewriting of record books from the receiving end.
There was however all quiet in the big bowl as Shakib Al Hasan not only missed his deserved maiden hundred by four runs but also the hope of chasing down the highest-ever total (521 runs) had evaporated.
Shakib would definitely say 'luck is a factor' in a cricket match otherwise how was it possible that he dragged the stumps while trying to drive an outside off-stump delivery from Prasad when he had done it successfully previously.
During Iris nearly five-hour stay Shakib made a career-best 96 that featured seven well-timed boundaries and shared a Ill-run partnership with Mushfiqur Rahim (61) after the departure of century-maker Mohammad Ashraful to test the nerves of the Lankans on the fifth and final day.
His dismissal put an end to a great run chase against a versatile bowling attack, mind it against whom they had always found themselves helpless, but the fans would remember it for years because there was no doubt that a year ended with a good Test match after successful big run chases from India and South Africa.
It could have been also a perfect end ofayear for Shakib if the left-hander could com-
plete his maiden ton as the smiling lad from Magura excelled himself as a left-arm spinner to prove his coach's (Jamie Siddons) words right as a 'world-class bowler' but was not as good in his batting.
It may be too early to brand him as a 'performer' after
impressive performance in one calendar year but one can't deny his efforts in the last year especially his emergence as a spinner to fill the vacuum after the departure of ace 1 e f t - a r in spinner Mohammad Rafique.
Just for a reminder, the
young all-rounder grabbed 30 wickets including four five-fors in nine Tests in the last year and scalped 22 in 19 one-day internationals but the batting record of 414 runs in Test and 408 in one-day with a hundred against Pakistan hardly reflect his calibre.
"There was dissatisfaction for not reaching the hundred and getting the victory. But still the team comes first to me because at one stage it seemed that it's possible to achieve the target," Shakib, who was adjudged man-of-the-match for his six-wicket haul and 122
runs, expressed his disappointment while talking in a post-match briefing.
One can't expect anything other than a very simple comment '1 enjoy cricket' If someone asked him what was the recipe behind his success. FROM PAGE 17
"What 1 always said was that 1 enjoy cricket. I feel good when I enter the ground. That's it. My performance has been improving day by day and there will be something happening if I could continue the trend," responded Shakib, who didn't want to compare his all-round effort against New Zealand with this match performance.
The young all-rounder also praised the pitch of Mirpur and branded it as the 'best wicket' in the country.
T think day by day the wicket has improved and in my opinion is that it's the best wicket in the country. The another thing is that we played well at home because we are playing this series after a tough tour in South Africa." he explained the reason behind Bangladesh's good show in the first Ttst.
Shakib also said that it was always a different taste for him to bat with players like
Mohammad Ashraful.
Without any doubt the effort of Shakib created another opportunity for the Tigers but it would be unfair to forget another fighter and he was none other than wicketkeeper Mushfiqur Raltim. who once again showed his calibre as a future star.
SCOREBOARD
Final scoreboard on the fifth and final day of the opening Test between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on Wednesday:
SRI LANKA: First innings 293 (Samarwecra 90; Shakib 5-70) BANGIADESH: First innings 178 (Imrul 33, Muraiidaran 6-49)
SRI LANKA: Second innings 405-6 deci (M Jayawardene 166,Sangakkara 67) BANGLADESH: Second innings (overnight 254-5) Tamim c P Jayawardene b Prasad 47
’’nrulrunout 13
Zunaed c M Jayawardene b Muraiidaran 37
Rokibul b Muraiidaran 24
Ashraful lbw b Vaas 101
Mehrab c sub (Kapugcdera) b Muraiidaran 23
Shakib b Prasad 96
Mushfiqur c Dilshan b Muraiidaran 61
Mashrafec P Jayawardene b Prasad 2
Mahbubul run out 2
Shahadatnotout 0
Extras: (lb-3. nb-4) 7
Total. (All outin 126 2 overs) 413
Fall of wickets: 1-40, 3-124, 4-
144. 5-180, 6-292, 7-403, 8-4C? q 411
Bowler u M F W
Vaas 25 5 74 1
Prasad 25.2 5 105 3
Muraiidaran 48 9 141 4
Herath 26 4 86 0
Dilshan 2 0 4 0
Result: Sri Lanka won by 107 runs.
Man-of-the-match: Shakib Al
Hasan.
Second Test: Chittagong (Ian 3-7)