Why did Bangladesh lose the third ODI against Sri Lanka yesterday? There may be several reasons. However, Bangladesh captain Mehidy Hasan Miraj said after the match that the main reason was the inability to form a partnership.

The all-rounder, who was appointed as Bangladesh's permanent ODI captain for the Sri Lanka series, also admitted that Bangladesh was under pressure due to his dismissal.

Chasing Sri Lanka's 285, Miraj and Towhid Hridoy put on a 43-run partnership for the fourth wicket. The Bangladesh team was also dreaming of this partnership because Miraj was playing very positive cricket.

However, the equation became difficult for Bangladesh after Miraj was dismissed for 28 runs off 25 balls off Dunith Vellalag's last ball of the 21st over. After his dismissal, Bangladesh needed 181 runs in 29 overs. Miraj also said after the match that his dismissal put Bangladesh in danger.

In the words of the Bangladesh captain, 'My dismissal put the team under pressure. I was trying to play in line with the run rate. The plan was to hit at least one boundary in every over so that my heart would not be stressed. So I took a calculated risk. But I couldn't play the shot properly. If I had played it properly, it would have been a six.'

There is no fifty-plus partnership in Bangladesh's innings. The highest partnership came from Miraj and Hridoy. Miraj says it is difficult to win matches with such a partnership, 'When Hridoy and Zaker were batting, we still believed we could win the match. But we could not build a big partnership like Sri Lanka. After losing three wickets for 100 runs, Kusal Mendis and Asalanka built a 124-run partnership. The partnership in the middle overs is very important. We got some 40-run partnerships, but it is difficult to win matches with these.'