Bangladesh fast bowler Taskin Ahmed described his team’s dramatic collapse in the first ODI against Sri Lanka as a “tough pill to swallow,” after they lost seven wickets for just five runs while chasing a modest target of 245 in Colombo. At one point cruising at 100-1, Bangladesh suddenly crashed to 105-8, recording the worst such collapse in men’s ODI history. Taskin, who had made a strong comeback from injury with impressive figures of 4-47, said he was casually having coffee in the dressing room when the meltdown unfolded.
“I was chilling in the dressing room with a coffee, and suddenly, five wickets down,” he told reporters post-match. “It was unexpected. The way we started today, I was expecting we would win with 5-6 overs in hand.”
He pointed to the over bowled by Wanindu Hasaranga as the turning point, where Najmul Hossain Shanto was run out and top scorer Tanzid Hasan Tamim (62) was dismissed in quick succession. Taskin noted that despite the collapse, the pitch itself was not unplayable, as shown by Jaker Ali Anik, who scored a fighting 51 and shared a 62-run stand for the ninth and tenth wickets combined, taking Bangladesh to a total of 167.
“It hurts because I am also a player. Bowling and batting combined, we are a team,” Taskin said. He praised Jaker’s composure at the end, stating, “If we had two or three batters left with him, we could have won.”
Looking ahead to Saturday’s second ODI, which is now a must-win for Bangladesh to stay alive in the series, Taskin expressed hope for a strong comeback. “Hopefully, we will come back stronger in the next game, and everyone will learn from the mistakes,” he concluded.
