Sports Desk:

Najmul Hossain Shanto struck a brilliant unbeaten fifty to help Bangladesh level the series against Sri Lanka after the hosts clinched an eight-wicket win during the second T20I at the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium on Wednesday.

Najmul struck 53 off 32 balls not out while Liton Das (36) Tawhid Hridoy (32 not out) and Soumya Sarkar (26) also made brilliant contributions as Bangladesh reached 170-2 in just 18.1 overs without any hassle to level the series 1-1.

Earlier, Bangladeshi bowlers showcased a more disciplined bowling performance from their opening three-run defeat game as they restricted the visitors to 165-5 in their 20 overs after they opted to bowl first.

Sri Lankan number three Kamindu Mendis made the highest 37 off 27 balls while opener Kusal Mendis and experienced Angelo Mathews scored 36 and 32 not out respectively. After losing opener Avishka Fernando (0) in the second over to Taskin Ahmed, the Mendis duo brought the visitors back into the contest by adding 66 runs for the second wicket.

Bangladeshi bowlers then took three quick wickets to reduce the islanders to 92-4 in the 13th over while interim skipper Charith Asalanka was also dismissed by Mahedi Hasan after hitting a quick-fire 28 off 14 balls that gave the hosts control in the contest.

Mathews and Dasun Shanaka (20 not out) then shared an unbeaten 53-run stand for the sixth wicket to give their bowlers a decent total to fight with in order to complete the series victory. However, their hopes suffered a big blow when Liton and Soumya put up 68 runs in just seven overs.

Soumya was declared out 14 after he edged pacer Binura Fernando at the back but the third umpire reversed the on-field umpire’s decision without exploring all the Ultra Edge facilities leaving Sri Lankan players and head coach furious both on and off the field.

Sri Lankan pacer Matheesha Pathirana removed both the openers in quick time but the new all-format skipper Najmul and in-form Hridoy shared an unbroken stand of 87 runs for the third wicket to take Bangladesh to victory with 11 balls to spare.

Najmul smashed Shanaka for a big six at deep square leg to not only complete his third T20I fifty but also to confirm Bangladesh’s clinical win over Sri Lanka.

It was only the second time in seven attempts Bangladesh beat Sri Lanka in a T20I on home soil after they first did so in 2016 during the Asia Cup.

The series-deciding third and final T20I will be held at the same venue on Saturday.