Bangladesh find themselves in a difficult situation after losing two wickets late on the third day. Tamim Iqbal, the top-scorer of their second innings so far, said the team needed to stage a strong recovery on the fourth day and was aiming at setting a target of at least 250.
Bangladesh were reasonably well placed on 142 for 2 but lost two wickets off successive balls with less than an hour's play left. They are now 52 ahead with six wickets in hand, but only have three genuine batsmen left.
"We are on the back foot," Tamim said. "We were in a good position when [Jahurul Islam] Omi bhai and Mominul [Haque] were batting. I think that was ideal for us. We had eight wickets and had the whole of tomorrow in hand. But we lost two wickets there in the end. We would like to give Sri Lanka a minimum of 250 to chase."
After Tamim fell just prior to the tea interval, and Mohammad Ashraful misjudged a Rangana Herath delivery, Jahurul and Mominul batted solidly and were steering the team to safety. Jahurul, however, fell to a rash stroke and was followed in the shed by Mahmudullah, who couldn't cover the line of the ball from Herath sufficiently.
"I think one or two of the dismissals were questionable. But nerves work for individuals, they all tried their best. We have gone back from a good position, which we have to recover from tomorrow," said Tamim.
Tamim's own dismissal upset Bangladesh's rhythm. Tamim had batted positively, despite the slow outfield and a deteriorating pitch. "I was trying to be very positive. Our target was to get over their lead as early as possible and take it from there. We almost did it, but I got out.
"I am not worried about my dismissal. The ball didn't get up as much as it was supposed to, so it wasn't in my control."
Mushfiqur and Mominul are currently at the crease and with Nasir Hossain to come, and they have the resources to stage a comeback. Sohag Gazi and Abul Hasan have made runs in international cricket, so they can be relied on as well.
"The captain [Mushfiqur Rahim] and Mominul are out there. If we can add another 100 in this current partnership and Nasir [Hossain] can chip in with some more, we will be in a much better position than today."