Taijul Islam was in fine form on day two of the Dhaka Test, claiming three wickets and putting India under pressure by making runs difficult to come by. India were at 19 for none at the end of day one. But they got off to a shaky start on day two in response to Bangladesh's first innings total of 227. At lunch of day two, India were batting at 83 for three, with Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant not out for 18 and 12, respectively. Read more: Siddons blames Bangladesh's batting collapse in Dhaka Test on mental lapses Indian captain Lokesh Rahul was the first batter to fall prey to Taijul. Although he tried to defend a delivery of the left-arm spinner, the ball hit his front pad first. Bangladesh appealed for an lbw, but the umpire was not convinced. However, the review revealed that the ball was indeed heading for the stumps and Rahul had no choice but to walk off the field. Shubman Gill became the next prey of Taijul. The ball hit his pad and the appeal for an lbw was convincing enough for the umpire to declare him out. India lost both openers with only 38 runs on the board. But the third wicket partnership between Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat was going well. However, their stand was cut short as Mominul Haque took a sharp catch at the short fine leg, allowing Taijul to claim his third wicket in the match, dismissing Pujara. Read more: Dhaka Test: Umesh, Ashwin run rampant, leave Bangladesh floundering Bangladesh opted to bat first in the Dhaka Test, with Mominul Haque contributing 84 runs to their 227/10. This was Mominul's first fifty after 12 innings. For India, Umesh Yadav and Ravichandran Ashwin each bagged four wickets.

After a bat-dominated first day, Bangladesh Friday staged a comeback in the competition, with bowlers Taskin Ahmed and Taijul Islam picking up three wickets in the first session of the second day of the final Test in Kandy. While right-arm pacer Taskin struck twice to remove Lahiru Thirimanne and Angelo Mathews, Taijul bagged the wicket of Dhananjaya de Silva. On Thursday, Bangladesh gave away 291 runs for just one wicket after losing the toss and sent to bowl first at Pallekelle International Cricket Stadium. Also read: Kandy Test Day 1: Karunaratne, Thirimanne's centuries propel Sri Lanka to 291/1 Bangladesh were wicketless in the first hour of day two. But it was a short delivery from Taskin which worked well for him. Thirimanne was uncomfortable and the ball touched his gloves before reaching the keeper safely. Thirimanne partnered with Dimuth Karunarate in the opening stand to put up 209 runs.  Two balls after scalping Thirimanne, Taskin could have sent Angelo Mathews back to the dressing room if he heard the sound of a clear neck. Wicketkeeper Liton Das also failed to hear the sound and thus they didn’t go for a review. But the TV replays showed a clear neck. Taskin eventually removed Mathews as Liton took an easy catch.  Bangladesh grabbed the third wicket of the session when Taijul removed Dhananjaya for two. Najmul Hossain Shanto took the catch in second chance after the Liton fumble. Before the wicket-taking delivery, Taijul showed some glimpses of turn and bounce on the wicket.  At the lunch break of day two, Sri Lanka were batting at 334 for four. In the first session of day two, the hosts added only 43 runs in 26 overs to their overnight total. Bangladesh conceded less than two runs per over in this session. 

Bangladesh left-arm spinner Taijul Islam believes the wicket at Kandy is not helping the bowlers much, making a push for victory in the first Test against Sri Lanka unlikely for the Tigers.  At the end of day three, the hosts in their first innings were comfortably placed to avoid the follow on at 229/3 in reply to Bangladesh's mammoth 541/7 declared. Captain Dimuth Karunaratne and Dhananjaya de Silva will resume on day 4 unbeaten with 85 and 26 respectively. Also Read: Sri Lanka make steady progress against Bangladesh's 541  Earlier, riding on a maiden century for Najmul Hossain Shanto and maiden away century for captain Mominul Haque, Bangladesh posted an impressive first innings total. Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim and Liton Das also did well hitting a fifty each. But clearly the lifeless pitch also played its part. “To be honest, there is no help from the wicket to create a situation to win this game. It’s the same for the pace-bowler and the spinners,” Taijul said in a virtual press conference after play wrapped up on day 3. Also Read: Kandy Test: Bangladesh declare posting a mammoth score  “We have to work hard maintaining discipline. If we can ensure that, we may be able to create a situation to win this game,” Taijul added. The left-arm spinner did bag a wicket with a peach of a delivery to remove the dangerous Angelo Mathews. Other than that, it was pretty tough going under the hot Sri Lankan sun.  While describing the plan for the next day, Taijul said that they will take the field eyeing a victory but will make sure that they don’t lose this game from this stage.  Possibly the best chance of a result in this game lies in Bangladesh being able to bowl their hosts out for 341 or less in the first innings - the follow on target. Sri Lanka are currently 112 runs short of that with 7 wickets in hand. Bangladesh are missing the service of the spin bowling consultant Daniel Vettori. Due to Covid-19 restriction in his country, Vettori was unable to travel to Sri Lanka. In his absence, the Bangladesh Cricket Board appointed Sohel Islam as the spin bowling coach for the Sri Lanka tour.  “We never get the service of a spin bowling consultant for a longer period of time. I have previously worked with Sohel personally. He understands the problem I’m facing. He just needs to see me once. I really feel comfortable working with him. I think we can do something good together,” Taijul added. 

After Liton Das, off-spinner Nayeem Hasan has also been ruled out of Kolkata Test after sustaining a blow on his head during his 28-ball stay in the middle. 

Dhaka, Sept 5 (UNB) — Taijul Islam, the left-arm spinner, became the fastest Bangladeshi bowler to take 100 Test wickets on Thursday.