Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh in 2019

One-day internationals (3): Sri Lanka 3, Bangladesh 0

This was the first series Sri Lanka had hosted since the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks, which had killed more than 250 people three months earlier. A decade after the end of their long civil war, it felt as if the country was back to square one.

Initially, the tour - already brought forward from December to avoid a clash with the Bangladesh Premier League - was in jeopardy, but the authorities were determined to put safety concerns to rest. The Bangladesh squad were guarded by the police's Special Task Force, with heavy security imposed on their hotel.

All three one-day internationals were played at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, a disappointment for the outposts of Kandy and Dambulla, and fans were checked thoroughly as they entered.

The teams should have met at the World Cup in England a few weeks earlier, but their match at Bristol was washed out, and both ended up in the bottom half of the table.

Back at home, Sri Lanka controlled the series from start to finish, with three big victories. The first match was overshadowed by Lasith Malinga's announcement that this would be his farewell to one-day international cricket. But, while they experimented with the bowling attack, a strong Sri Lankan batting line-up led by Angelo Mathews and Kusal Perera kept them on top throughout.

Bangladesh had arrived in some disarray. Their coach, Steve Rhodes, had departed after the World Cup; their best player, all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan, was given leave to go on a pilgrimage to Mecca after an outstanding tournament in England; batsman-keeper Liton Das was getting married; and captain Mashrafe bin Mortaza was ruled unfit.

Tamim Iqbal, Bangladesh's leading run-scorer in all three formats, took over the captaincy, but the role did not suit him. He had a disastrous series, managing only 21 runs; Mushfiqur Rahim played well for 175, just behind Mathews and Perera.