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In the first two days of the Test at Pallekele, the bowlers did not get much advantage, but on the third day, the bowlers got extra bounce and turn from the wicket as that caused collapse of the batting unit of Bangladesh. Bangladesh were bowled out for 251 in the first innings as they could not handle the Lankan spinners. The head coach of Bangladesh Russell Domingo thinks that the batsmen are lacking in attention.

Tamim Iqbal and Saif Hasan, the two openers, made a decent start in reply to Sri Lanka's 493 runs. Like in the first Test, Tamim picked up a quick half-century. Debutant Praveen Jayawickrama has broken the partnership and bagged the first wicket of his six wickets. He finished his spell with 6 for 92 runs.

The stunning debut performance, which is better than Upul Chandana's 6 for 179 against Pakistan in 1999, left the visitors trailing by 242 runs; Bangladesh losing their last seven wickets for 37 runs. Sri Lanka, however, didn't enforce the follow-on and ended the day on 17 for 2.

“No, there is no excuse. The boys have given their best, they are working hard, they are trying. No excuses, but spending a lot of time on the field may have caused them a little lack of attention while batting. You have to remember that the boys have spent about 380 overs on the field. It affects mentally and physically and that may be part of the reason for our batting collapse today” Domingo said in a virtual press conference on Saturday.

“I think it’s (batting collapse) a combination of several things. The boys have spent a lot of time on the field in the last 4-5 days, they may be a little tired mentally,”

The Tiger coach has admitted that they are in the back foot right now in this test but also he wants to stay positive and aiming to take some early wickets.

“We were part of an incredible Test match a few weeks ago. When West Indies chased us and won by 396 runs. We know we are still far behind in this match, we are under a lot of pressure, Sri Lanka is dominating at the moment. But if we can take 2-3 wickets quickly tomorrow morning, we will be able to create a little fear in their dressing room. You never know, maybe someone will play a great innings. We need to stay positive” he added.