Karunaratne: I don’t think it’s a good wicket for Test cricket

Sri Lanka opener Dimuth Karunaratne termed the Chittagong pitch as “not good for Test match cricket” Sunday and hoped for a 50-50 wicket in the second and final Test, scheduled to get underway at Mirpur Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka Thursday. The Bangladesh batsmen batted well in the fifth day and lost only two wickets in more than 73 overs to secure a draw. Sri Lanka bowlers were left frustrated throughout the day as the pitch did not offer much purchase to the spinners. “Bangladesh put up 500-plus on the board but our batters showed a lot of character to put up 700-plus on the board. The boys did well to put them under pressure on this wicket by getting a big score. I don’t think this is a good wicket for Test cricket because already 1,500 runs have been scored. I think there needs to be something for the bowlers as well. I am hopeful we will get a 50-50 wicket in the next Test,” Karunaratne said during the post-match press conference in the port city.

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Also read: Chittagong wicket was really good, says Mahmudullah

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“Normally in sub-continent, there is some turn in the fourth and fifth day. Here, there wasn’t much turn or bounce. Batsmen can play big shots off the backfoot as well. Once one gets set, he can get a really big one on this wicket. There were a lot of big runs in the scorecard,” he added. Karunaratne though gave credit to No 3 batsman Mominul Haque and wicketkeeper-batsman Liton Das for the way they batted. “Credit goes to Mominul for the way he batted in both innings. On the fifth day, the morning session was crucial. If we had a couple of wickets, we had a chance. Mominul and Liton did really well. They didn’t throw away their wickets. Actually there wasn’t any help for our bowlers, but it is part of the game. There was no turn or bounce; it was a bit slow. The batters can really play their natural game,” he said. Karunaratne was out for nought in the first innings where the left-hander was caught in the slip cordon against off-spinner Mehedi Hasan Miraz.