JOIN USMushfiqur Rahim on Monday became the first Bangladeshi to crack a double-century while Nasir Hossain hit a maiden ton as the tourists gained a 68-run lead in the first Test against Sri Lanka.
Skipper Rahim hit a solid 200 and Hossain an impressive 100 as Bangladesh were bowled out for 638, their highest total in 76 Tests, in reply to Sri Lanka’s first-innings total of 570 for four declared.
The hosts reached 116 for one in their second innings at stumps on the penultimate day of the Test in Galle.
Opener Tillakaratne Dilshan was unbeaten on 63 and Kumar Sangakkara 49 not out.
Rahim’s memorable moment came in the second over after lunch when he pushed paceman Nuwan Kulasekara for a single to the covers on a day when Mohammad Ashraful (190) missed out on his own Test double-hundred.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Rahim, 24, was trapped leg before wicket by Kulasekara in the same over, but not before helping Bangladesh surpass their previous highest Test total of 556 against the West Indies in Dhaka last year.
Solid batting
Bangladesh, who dominated the match for a second successive day with their solid batting, also became only the third team after India and Pakistan to score 600 or more in a Test innings in Sri Lanka.
Rahim, 152 overnight, hit one six and 22 fours in his brilliant 321-ball knock. He put on a record 267 for the fifth wicket with Ashraful and 106 for the next with Hossain.
Bangladesh’s previous highest stand for any wicket in Tests was 200 between Tamim Iqbal and Junaid Siddique against India in Dhaka in 2010.