Bangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto blasted twin centuries to help his side draw the first test against Sri Lanka in Galle on Saturday, while Angelo Mathews brought the curtain down on his red-ball career after more than 100 games for the hosts.
Shanto followed up his first-innings hundred with an unbeaten 125 in the second stanza after Mushfiqur Rahim was run out for 49, and Bangladesh declared on 285-6 to set Sri Lanka a steep victory target of 296 runs from 37 overs.
Najmul Hossain Shanto, the first Bangladesh captain to score hundreds in both innings of a Test match.
— Bangladesh Cricket (@BCBtigers) June 21, 2025
Photo Credit: SLC#BANvSL | #BCB | #BangladeshCricket pic.twitter.com/pmG0EEy8v4
Sri Lanka lost a couple of quick wickets before Mathews, a veteran with more than 8 000 test runs to his name, held steadfast with the bat - albeit barely scoring any runs. In the end, Bangladesh called it a day with the score on 72 for four with five overs left.
Bangladesh had made Sri Lanka toil on the opening two days, amassing 495 runs in their first innings, including 148 for Shanto and 163 for Rahim, with Litton Das (90) unlucky to miss out on a century of his own.
What followed was a batting tug-of-war on a placid wicket as Sri Lanka opener Pathum Nissanka piled up 187 runs before Dinesh Chandimal (54) and Kamindu Mendis (87) helped the hosts reach 485 to concede only a 10-run lead at the halfway mark.
TURN AND BOUNCE
Bangladesh offspinner Nayeem Hasan, who had begun to extract turn and bounce on a pitch showing signs of wear on the fourth day, claimed 5-121 - his fourth five-wicket haul in tests - to ensure Sri Lanka could not build a lead of their own.
The tourists then roared to 177 for three in their second innings at the end of the penultimate day for a healthy advantage, with Shadman Islam (76) giving them the chance to push for a rare overseas test victory and valuable World Test Championship points.
After showers late in the opening session on the fifth day wiped out 26 overs, Shanto reached his well-deserved hundred and asked Sri Lanka to bat again and attempt to chase down their big target at an asking rate of eight runs an over.
Match drawn! 🏏 The first Test between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh at Galle has concluded in a hard-fought draw. We now look ahead to the second Test, which kicks off on June 25th at SSC Colombo! #SLvBAN #ThankYouAngelo pic.twitter.com/g7NMXnrVRT
— Sri Lanka Cricket 🇱🇰 (@OfficialSLC) June 21, 2025
Former captain Mathews, who scored 39 in Sri Lanka's first innings, showed resilience in the final session and received a standing ovation when he fell for eight off 45 balls in his 119th and final test.
The result was the first drawn game in Galle for 12 years. The second test starts in Colombo next Wednesday and the two sides later play three one-day internationals and three Twenty20 internationals.
BANGLADESH: Najmul Hossain Shanto (capt), Shadman Islam, Anamul Haque, Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim, Litton Das, Jaker Ali, Taijul Islam, Nayeem Hasan, Hasan Mahmud, Nahid Rana
SRI LANKA: Pathum Nissanka, Lahiru Udara, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Kamindu Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva (capt), Kusal Mendis, Milan Rathnayake, Tharindu Ratnayake, Prabath Jayasuriya, Asitha Fernando.