Mahedi was Litton's 'first name in the line-up' for Colombo T20I

Bangladesh captain Litton Das had earmarked offspinner Mahedi Hasan for the third T20I at the R Premadasa Stadium when he first saw their tour schedule for Sri Lanka. Mahedi repaid the faith by picking up career-best figures of 4 for 11 in Bangladesh's eight-wicket win, which also gave them their first series win - by 2-1 - against Sri Lanka.

Two of Mahedi's wickets came in the powerplay, taking his tally to 30 in that phase since January 2021, the most for any spinner on that list. Litton said that Mahedi's skillset suited the pitch, where spinners have generally done well. Mahedi got into the act straightaway on Wednesday night, removing Kusal Perera in his first over before having Dinesh Chandimal mistime a slog in the fifth.

"We felt that Mahedi's skills would be a perfect fit for the Colombo wicket," Litton said after Bangladesh's victory. "It doesn't mean he doesn't bowl well on other wickets. I had planned it as soon as I saw the schedule that Mahedi will be my first name in the line-up at this venue. It also doesn't mean that Mehidy [Hasan Miraz] is not a good bowler or batter. As a team leader, I will think deeply about the surface before choosing a team. A bowling-friendly surface will always make me pick Mahedi. If it is batting-friendly, Miraz will come back into the team."

The occasion was further special for Mahedi, as he was returning to the side after missing Bangladesh's last five T20Is. He wasn't picked in the first two matches of this series after he went for plenty of runs in three games against UAE and Pakistan in May. It may have been harsh for Mahedi, who was adjudged Player of the Series in the West Indies in December, having powered Bangladesh to a 3-0 series win.

Litton said he never had a shortage of belief, which helped them clinch the series, making it only the second time Bangladesh won a T20I series after going down 1-0 in a three-match affair.

"It is a proud moment for me as a captain. I am happy that the fans are also happy seeing us win a T20I series in Sri Lanka," he said. "We always try to give our 100% in the middle. We train in the way that we can give 100% in the middle. I always had the belief. I never had a shortage of belief in my ten years at this level."

Litton further said that other than the batting collapses - 94 all out in the second T20I, 186 all out in the third ODI and 167 all out in the first ODI - Bangladesh had a decent tour of Sri Lanka. He felt that the batting unit must take more responsibility across formats.

"We didn't play bad cricket in all the formats. It looks different as we had some batting collapses," he said. "All the batters fell for 30-35 runs in the second Test, which had a good batting track. Someone had to play a big knock. It was the same in the first ODI: we lost plenty of wickets in a collapse. We need to be more focused as a batting unit, and take responsibility with our choices of shots, [and] we will do better."

Litton himself showed a bit of form, with his 76 off 50 in Bangladesh's 83-run win in the second T20I. It was a pivotal knock as Litton added half-century stands with Towhid Hridoy and Shamim Hossain in critical phases. It was also a break from his long white-ball slump. Litton also scored 32 in the third T20I, helping Bangladesh out of an early setback. He said he was getting hungry to score runs and looking for an opportunity.

"I think hunger was a factor, I wasn't scoring runs for a long time," he said. "I was looking for an opportunity to grab. It was a plus point in the second T20I. I think winning changes the face of the team. We also won the second game by 83 runs, which is a huge achievement. The whole team had the confidence of winning if we played our best cricket.

"All I can do is try hard. I don't sit in the hotel room. I don't miss training sessions. You have to keep trying as a player. You also need blessing from God. I think luck smiled at me in the second T20I. But I keep trying hard on and off the field. I worked on my own mostly. There are some people who helped me. It can be motivating too."