Sri Lanka aim to continue winning

Bangladesh have squandered enough opportunities to win in the past and this fact will be rubbing on their captain Shakib Al Hasan when they take on Sri Lanka in the third match of the Asia Cup at Dambulla today.

The hosts have made a winning start in the tournament - against Pakistan - and have an excellent track record against Bangladesh. Lasith Malinga proved a surprise element on a slow track and Muttiah Muralitharan found spin and bounce towards the end of the Pakistan innings. Sri Lanka bat till low down the order and even without Sanath Jayasuriya, do not lack aggression with Tillakaratne Dilshan at the top of the order.

On the other hand, Bangladesh suffered a humiliating defeat against India after they were well-placed for a challenging total. Hasan admitted that his team has played well as individuals but not as a team.

Tamim Iqbal and Imrul Kayes gave their team a good start but the middle-order collapse was a familiar sight for the Bangladesh fans.

Their habit of throwing away moments of brilliance might haunt them against the defending Asian champions who grasp every opportunity and have promised to get “more ruthless”.

“We got our basic rights but we need to get more ruthless when we get opportunities,” said Sangakkara after his team won against Pakistan on Tuesday.

Published in the Express Tribune, June 18^th, 2010.