Beginning the final day 119 runs behind and with seven second winnings wickets in hand after Sri Lanka had declared their first innings on 713 for nine, Bangladesh needed to bat out three sessions to save the match.
Mominul Haque became the first Bangladesh cricketer to hit a century in each innings of a Test match as he and Liton Das helped the hosts secure a draw in the first Test against Sri Lanka on Sunday.
Beginning the final day 119 runs behind and with seven second winnings wickets in hand after Sri Lanka had declared their first innings on 713 for nine, Bangladesh needed to bat out three sessions to save the match. They eventually succeeded in their mission as Mominul followed up his 176 in the first innings with 105 and Liton made 94 after Bangladesh had resumed on 81 for three.
The duo batted through the morning session to frustrate Sri Lanka, their 180-run stand coming to an end when spinner Dhananjaya de Silva had Mominul caught in the slip.
Stand-in skipper Mahmudullah faced 65 balls in his unbeaten 28 as Bangladesh reached 307-5 when players from both sides shook hands with 17 overs remaining in the batsman-dominated conTest in which 1533 runs were scored for 24 wickets in five days.
The visitors fancied their chances for a victory when veteran spinner Rangana Herath picked up the crucial wicket of Mushfiqur Rahim off the last ball on the fourth day. But Mominul, 18 not out overnight, and Liton Das, who fell just six runs short of his maiden Test century, shared a crucial 180-run stand for the fourth wicket to frustrate the Sri Lankan bowlers.
It was Dhananjaya de Silva who broke their partnership, dismissing Mominul shortly after the left-hander scored his second century of the game with a single off Lakshan Sandakan. Dimuth Karunaratne took the catch at slip to bring the curtains down on a fine innings, featuring five fours and two sixes.
Man-of-the-Match Mominul had nicked a delivery from Herath on 89 but wicketkeeper Niroshan Dickwella failed to grab a low catch. Liton also looked confident on the other side but his lavish attempt for a six to complete his century brought his downfall.
Dilruwan Perera ran backward from mid-off to take a fine catch off Herath as Liton departed after hitting 11 fours during his 182-ball stay. A short ball from Lahiru Kumara struck Mominul on the helmet but he appeared unfazed and scored a single off the next ball, becoming the highest run scorer for Bangladesh in a single Test.
Mominul, who reached 56 with the single, overtook Tamim Iqbal`s aggregate of 231 runs against Pakistan in Khulna in 2015. Herath finished with 2/80 for Sri Lanka.
Dhaka hosts the second and final Test from Thursday.
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