Bangladesh will start the final day in Galle 187 runs in front, seven wickets intact and, for once, believing that an overseas Test is still theirs to shape. A figure-of-eight sort of contest has flattened out thanks largely to Nayeem Hasan’s first five-for abroad and Shadman Islam’s calm 76, both arriving at moments when the match was tugging Sri Lanka’s way.
Sri Lanka’s seventh-wicket pair, Milan Rathnayake and Kamindu Mendis, added 84 to wipe out an early deficit and threaten a lead of their own. Nayeem, deputising for the unwell Mehidy Hasan Miraz, broke that stand, cleaned up the tail and finished with 5 for 121. Ten runs to the good, Bangladesh then put on 177 for three before stumps, Shadman batting through much of the evening alongside Najmul Hossain Shanto and Mushfiqur Rahim.
Nayeem’s spell was both patient and inventive. He switched from over to around the wicket depending on the hand of the batter, holding the ball seam-up one delivery, scrambled the next. The decisive moment came when Mendis, nine short of a maiden hundred, offered a thin edge to the keeper. “I think I bowled a great delivery to him. It was also great to remove three right-hand batters,” the 24-year-old said, a grin giving away just how much it meant.
From there the off-spinner ran through the lower order, a phase in which Bangladesh sides of the past have often drifted. He explained the method in modest, almost homespun terms. “I tried to bowl in one good spot and then adjust my variation there. I tried changing the seam position from time to time. My line depended on who I was bowling to. I had different plans for each batter,” he said, before reflecting on how long spells on slow domestic pitches have shaped him. “We have to bowl well for a long time in our first-class cricket… Wickets here only come after you have bowled a long time on a consistent line and length.”
Shadman’s contribution was less dramatic but equally valuable. Bangladesh have made a habit of losing early second-innings wickets, especially away from home. The left-hander, back in the XI only two Tests ago, left well, drove sparingly and forced Sri Lanka’s seamers to straighten their lines. Anamul Haque, his new partner, scratched around and fell cheaply; Shadman simply parked the ego and waited. When boundaries came they were risk-controlled—one neat punch through cover, a clip behind square, a lofted sweep once the spinners dropped short.
“It was a batting-friendly wicket so we tried to bowl consistently in one area,” Nayeem said of Bangladesh’s earlier work with the ball. The same patience is now required with the bat. The visitors have enough time to add another 120, declare, and still give themselves 50-plus overs to hunt ten wickets. Equally, a rash half-hour in the morning could open the door for Sri Lanka’s trio of turnaround experts—Prabath Jayasuriya, Asitha Fernando, and the endlessly resourceful Mendis.
For context, Bangladesh last won a Test in Sri Lanka seven years ago and have taken only two of their past 13 away matches anywhere. They have also been criticised for requiring individual brilliance—think Shakib, Tamim, or Mushfiqur—to paper over collective lapses. Here, the load has been shared. Taijul Islam kept things tight while Nayeem attacked; Shanto’s 41 not out has allowed Mushfiqur to settle; the slip cordon, often fidgety, held its chances.
Coach Chandika Hathurusingha spoke quietly on the outfield afterwards, insisting nothing is decided. Yet he conceded the dressing-room felt “lighter than usual” going into a fifth day. A win would level the series and offer tangible proof that the side can finish what it starts. A draw, on a Galle surface wearing but far from spiteful, remains the bookmakers’ favourite. Sri Lanka will feel 300 is gettable if they bat sensibly; Bangladesh know that conceding fewer than four an over for a session and a half would keep them ahead.
Nayeem, asked what the attack must do from here, kept it simple. “When you cut off the runs, the batter gets under pressure. He tries to do something different, which can lead to a mistake.” And on the batsmen’s task? “I think only those who batted in the middle know what it is like. Shadman bhai batted really well. Mushy bhai and Shanto bhai are also doing well. It is all going well.”
A sentence or two later he looked up at the scoreboard, shrugged, and wandered back to the pavilion. Nothing flashy, nothing finished—but, for Bangladesh, plenty still to play for.
