Mushfiqur hails Tigers character after historic win
Mushfiqur Rahim praised the character of his Bangladesh side after they claimed a first Test win against Sri Lanka and Rangana Herath denied his team were guilty of complacency in Colombo.
The Tigers made history by sealing a four-wicket victory on the final day of their 100th Test to draw the series 1-1, chasing down a target of 191 after Tamim Igbal made 82 at the top of the order.
Mushfiqur was proud of the way the tourists regrouped following a crushing 259-run defeat in the first Test in Galle.
"It feels great to complete this victory and level the series. We showed lot of character throughout the Test match after a bitter defeat in Galle." he said.
"The boys really stepped up under pressure. If you look at the last few series, we have played good cricket.
"What made me happy was how we understood the value of the match even when we were ahead or behind in the game. We tried to understand the value of a run, a miss-field.
"Giving away runs in the first innings may not seem much at the time, but it comes back to hurt you at the end of the day.
"We tried to recognise these small things. The fact that we realised each and every bit of it was quite impressive. The batsmen and bowlers played with responsibility, which made it a happy moment."
100th Test in numbers. #SLvBAN pic.twitter.com/YSEAuimyMJ
— Bangladesh Cricket (@BCBtigers) March 19, 2017
Stand-in Sri Lanka skipper Herath said the hosts did not take Bangladesh lightly.
"I really thought that we could defend it, because we have played games with India and Pakistan and defended low scores," the veteran spinner said.
"We also had three spinners. When we got two early wickets, I felt the same way, but after lunch they were in an attacking mood and scored some quick runs. That's where the match slipped from us in the fourth innings.
"I thought we made too many mistakes while fielding and batting. We dropped a couple of crucial catches and that was the main reason for us to lose the match."