Sri Lanka completed a thumping win by 215 runs © AFP

Bangladesh got a taste of their own medicine as Sri Lanka clinched the two-match Test series against the host with a 215-run win in Dhaka on Saturday (February 10). Bangladesh relied on their blueprint for victory - a spinning track - that worked very well against England and Australia at the same venue.

After a drawn game on a 'below average' surface in Chittagong, Bangladesh had two options - prepare a sporting wicket or one where spinners will dominate proceedings from early hours. Bangladesh took the tried and tested route of the latter, but Sri Lanka came across much-better equipped. They applied themselves better than England and Australia by adapting to the conditions quicker.

Bangladesh took the gamble, but Sri Lanka emerged on top, raising questions regarding the home side's ability to judge their opposition while devising plans. However, Mahmudullah pointed out that the 'gamble' was worth taking at a time when Bangladesh have gotten rid of their defensive mindset.

"Cricket is like a gamble," Mahmudullah said after the defeat. "We knew about their strength against spin, while we backed our spinners. We knew it will be challenging for our batsmen and we had the confidence that our batsmen will be able to take the challenge. Unfortunately it did not happen," he said.

"We must make this kind of gamble. There is no use playing Tests with a defensive mindset and play on a dead wicket. In Chittagong, our batsmen batted well so we took this chance. I think we should have done better in the first innings. Chasing over 300 runs in the second innings is difficult. If we could've gotten close to their target in the first innings things could have been different. You must bat with a positive intent or else if you give the bowlers a chance to settle you would be in enormous trouble."

Bangladesh spinners gave the home side a good start to the Test, as Abdur Razzak and Taijul Islam picked eight out of the 10 wickets to fall, bowling out Sri Lanka for 222. However, Sri Lanka spinners picked five in the first innings, bundling out Bangladesh for 110. Considering the amount of turn that the pitch offered, Sri Lanka did a fine job of scoring 226 in the second innings and setting a mammoth target of 339.

Bangladesh didn't get anywhere close, folding meekly for 123 as the spin troika of Dilruwan Perera (1 for 32), Rangana Herath (4 for 49) and Akila Dananjaya (5 for 24) wreaked havoc. In the process, Herath also became the most successful left-arm bowler in Test history - surpassing Wasim Akram's wickets tally of 414.

Mahmudullah rued Bangladesh's failure to match the consistency levels of the Sri Lankan spinners and felt they need to work on that. The Bangladesh spinners bowled short and wide in the second innings, allowing the Sri Lankan batsmen to settle in.

"The difference was that when you look at Herath, Perera or Akila's bowling, you will find that we had to take lots of risks to hit boundaries off them. On the other hand our bowlers bowled five good deliveries before bowling a loose one to give away an easy boundary. We have to work on this aspect. We needed more patience on this wicket. The spinners could have bowled better although the batsmen are to blame.

The home side captain also felt the choice of shots from his batters could've been much better. "We should have been more careful with the choice of shots, on this wicket, first innings becomes crucial. Their bowlers were very good, always kept us under pressure," Mahmudullah said.

The teams now have a four-day gap before the start of the two-match T20I series - on February 18 in Dhaka.