Bangladesh made history on Wednesday night in Colombo by chasing down Sri Lanka’s modest 132-run total with 21 balls to spare, securing their first-ever T20I series victory on Sri Lankan soil. The eight-wicket win in the series decider at the R Premadasa Stadium was powered by a blistering unbeaten knock from Tanzid Hasan Tamim and a career-best bowling display from Sheikh Mahedi Hasan.
In pursuit of a relatively small target, Bangladesh lost opener Parvez Hossain Emon off the very first ball. However, that proved to be the only early blemish. Tanzid, opening the innings, lit up the stadium with an audacious display of power-hitting. His standout shot came early in the innings when he lofted Maheesh Theekshana over extra cover for a stunning six. That set the tone for what was to come.
The left-hander smashed six sixes in total during his unbeaten 47-ball 76, which included only one four. Before reaching his half-century, all of his runs had come from sixes, singles, and doubles. He eventually brought up his fifth T20I fifty off 27 deliveries with a fortunate boundary via an outside edge.
Litton Das played the anchor role at the other end, scoring a measured 30 off 34 balls. It was Tanzid who took the lead, though. He found strong support from Towhid Hridoy, with whom he shared an unbroken 48-run stand to guide Bangladesh to victory. Hridoy sealed the match with a composed 27 off 25 balls, ending the contest in the 17th over.
Earlier, it was Sheikh Mahedi who laid the foundation for this famous win. He was included in the playing XI in place of Mehidy Hasan Miraz and made an instant impact with the ball. The off-spinner returned outstanding figures of 4 for 11 from his four overs, which is now his best in T20 internationals. He bowled 17 dot balls and dismantled the Sri Lankan top order, reducing the hosts to 69 for 5 at one stage.
Sri Lanka never truly recovered from that collapse. Dasun Shanaka provided some late fireworks, hitting two sixes and two fours in the final over bowled by Shoriful Islam. It was an otherwise poor spell that cost 36 runs from three overs, including 22 runs in that last over alone. Without Shanaka’s late surge, Sri Lanka might have struggled to even reach 120.
Bangladesh’s bowlers maintained excellent control for most of the innings. Mustafizur Rahman conceded just 20 runs from his four overs, continuing his strong form. Leg-spinner Rishad Hossain also impressed, giving away only 20 runs despite not picking up a wicket. Shamim Hossain made an impact as well, taking 1 for 10 in his two overs. Although Tanjim Sakib had two overs remaining in his quota, skipper Litton Das did not bring him back after he gave away 23 runs.
This landmark win wrapped up a dominant all-round performance and marked a major milestone in Bangladesh’s rise in the shortest format.
Match Stats
3rd T20I – R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
Sri Lanka – 132 all out in 19.5 overs
- Dasun Shanaka 27 (13), Kusal Perera 22 (17)
- Sheikh Mahedi 4-11 (4), Shoriful 1-36 (3)
Bangladesh – 136/2 in 16.3 overs
- Tanzid Hasan 76* (47), Towhid Hridoy 27* (25), Litton Das 30 (34)
- Nuwan Thushara 1-22 (3), Kamindu Mendis 1-10 (2)
Result: Bangladesh won by 8 wickets with 21 balls remaining
Player of the Match: Sheikh Mahedi Hasan
Player of the Series: Litton Das (117 runs in 3 matches)
Series result: Bangladesh won 2-1