Bangladesh arrived with hope. But on the fourth morning in Colombo, hope lasted just half an hour.
Sri Lanka completed a crushing innings-and-78-run win, wrapping up the match and the series 1-0. What had promised to be a tense final session turned into a swift and clinical takedown. Bangladesh’s innings folded within 30 painful minutes, leaving little space for drama and no room for resistance.
It all began with a whisper of spin and a faint nick. On the fifth ball of the morning, Litton Das — Bangladesh’s most dependable man behind the stumps and often their most composed under pressure — fell. Prabath Jayasuriya, the left-arm spinner who had hunted quietly through the Test, landed the first blow. Litton, on 14 from 43 balls, played for the turn. The ball kissed the edge, and Kusal Mendis behind the stumps didn’t flinch. Just like that, the gate was open.
One over later, the walls began to fall. Nayeem Hasan, trying to break the pattern, danced down the pitch. It was a move of intent, but not precision. Jayasuriya’s ball spun sharply, past the bat, and into Mendis’ gloves again. The stumping was swift, and Bangladesh lost another.
The scoreboard moved like time in a dream — slow, then suddenly fast. Prabath returned to trap Taijul Islam with a sharp caught-and-bowled to complete his five-wicket haul. Tharindu Ratnayake, not to be left out, delivered the final strike. A full ball trapped Ebadot Hossain in front. Umpire’s finger went up. Bangladesh, all out for 133.
It was all over. No fight. No fairytale. Just a quiet end. Sri Lanka didn’t celebrate wildly. Their job was done. They had waited for the cracks to widen, then poured through them with discipline and skill. Prabath Jayasuriya finished with figures that told their own story — five scalps and a hand on every turning point of the match.
The second innings exposed everything Bangladesh tried to hide. No batter stood long enough. No partnership formed strong enough. Only Shadman Islam in the first session, and Mominul Haque in flashes, had offered anything resembling defiance. The rest was either hesitation or surrender.
This wasn’t just a defeat. It was a mirror — one Bangladesh must now look into. The batting remains brittle. The footwork against spin still uncertain. And against well-drilled opposition, hesitation becomes collapse.
The series goes to Sri Lanka, deservedly. For Bangladesh, questions now echo louder than ever. The red-ball dream, once again, fades into the familiar.