Jayasuriya gets 300 as Sri Lanka steamroll Bangladesh

Sri Lanka v Bangladesh, 2nd ODI, Colombo

Jayasuriya gets 300 as Sri Lanka steamroll Bangladesh

46.5 overs Bangladesh 137 (Aftab 47, Jayasuriya 4-31, Malinga 3-22) ) v Sri Lanka

Aftab Ahmed played an uncharacterstically defensive innings as he tried to arrest a middle-order slide © AFP

Sanath Jayasuriya got his 300th ODI wicket when he picked up 4 for 31 as Bangladesh were skittled out for 137 under overcast skies at the R Premadasa Stadium. The Bangladesh batting imploded for the second game in succession in the face of ruthless a bowling performance by the home side. An incisive opening burst by Lasith Malinga and Farveez Maharoof started the slide and the then spinners took over to seal the innings with more than three overs still to go.

It was a good toss to win for Mahela Jayawardene as the seamers uitilised the damp pitch and overcast conditions to repeat their demolition the top order . Aftab Ahmed, who top-scored with 47, dropped anchor after Bangladesh had tottered to 26 for 4 in the 15th over and hung around till the 41st over. It was a knock completely out of character given his propensity to attack from the word 'go', as he buckled down and arrested a possible middle-over slide.

With their backs to the wall in terms of the series, the start was hardly auspicious as the openers failed to lay the groundwork, failing to adapt to the ball swinging in both directions and kicking off a good length. Malinga prised out both openers in quick succession, varying his length in both dismissals. Shahriar Nafees was given no room outside the off stump to free his arms and he played and missed on quite a few occasions. His patience ran out when he attempted a cheeky glance down to third man off a good length delivery outside off stump. The ball came in just a touch after pitching and the edge was taken comfortably by Jayawardene at second slip.

Tamim Iqbal was subdued for 16 deliveries for his three and was dismissed while playing all around a Malinga yorker. Tamim was completely beaten for pace as the ball, swinging in on middle and leg, crashed onto his stumps, leaving his side at 13 for 2. The strategy of promoting Mushfiqur Rahim up the order didn't pay off as his stint lasted a mere four deliveries. A victim of another rude wake up call by Malinga, Rahim was caught off guard by one that kicked on him just short of a good length and a big outside edge was snapped up acrobatically by Kumar Sangakkara to his right. First slip would have gobbled it up but Sangakkara was a little too quick for him.

The second Powerplay produced just six runs, indicative of the challenging batting conditions. The batsmen failed to get the ball past the infield and the runs came at a crawl and the wicket burst failed to help their cause. Tushar Imran was the fourth victim, beaten for pace and cut by Maharoof, who got the ball to jag in and clip the off stump. He gave no freebies in his opening spell, conceding just 11 runs off eight overs. Mohammad Ashraful and Aftab began the repair work after Imran's departure, though the runs continued to flow at a trickle. Aftab fetched his first boundary off Dilhara Fernando, who erred by pitching it too full on off stump, allowing Aftab to loft through the line. The pair added 61 before Ashraful fell to Jayasuriya, caught behind trying to glide one to third man.

Shakib Al Hasan began confidently with a cover drive off Malinga Bandara and grafted the spinners, operating from both ends. With the field spread out, both Aftab and Shakib picked up singles consistently and laid the platform for another revival. Indiscretion on Shakib's part brought Sri Lanka back in business as he was bowled by Bandara while attempting a slog sweep. Aftab squandered an opportunity to get a fifty when he pulled straight to midwicket, giving Jayasuriya his second scalp.

By then, Bangladesh hardly looked like crossing 150 and the nature of the dismissals that followed was just a sad reflection of an innings which had little of any entertainment value. A run-out, followed by desperate lofts straight down fielders' throats ended the innings in the 47th over. Sri Lanka are within touching distance of a series win and the Bangladesh bowlers need to find a huge amount of inspiration and find it quick to save face in another one-sided series.