SL vs BAN 1st Test, Day 3: Dimuth Karunaratne steady Sri Lanka after Bangladesh make crucial inroads

Sri Lanka ended Day 3 at 229 for 3 with Dimuth Karunaratne unbeaten on 85 and Dhananjaya de Silva not out on 26 after Bangladesh posted 541 for 7.

Dimuth Karunaratne was not out on 85 as Sri Lanka ended the third day on 229 for 3, 312 behind Bangladesh's first-innings total of 541 for 7 at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Pallekele. Thirimanne fell prey to Mehidy Hasan and then Oshada Fernando and Angelo Mathews began well but failed to convert their good starts into big scores and they departed in the 20s. Karunaratne then found support in the form of Dhananjaya de Silva (26*) as they saw Sri Lanka to stumps at 229/3. Earlier, Bangladesh resumed the third day at 474//4 with Mushfiqur and Liton at the crease. The batsman picked up where they left off, adding a quick-fire 37 runs to their day two partnership. Rahim brought up his half-century a calculated knock; Liton, on the other hand, registered up his half-century in a much quicker fashion, taking only 67 balls. The partnership helped push Bangladesh's total past the 500-run mark.