Sri Lanka beat Australia by 106 runs in 1st test

Chasing 268 runs for victory, Australia eventually folded for 161 in Steve Smith’s first loss as their Test captain. Left-arm wrist spinner Lakshan Sandikan finished with 3-49 in his debut match.

Skipper Steve Smith was batting on 26 with Adam Voges on nine when rain, which had delayed the start of play by an hour, washed out the final session for the third time in four days.

Smith was the top scorer for the tourists with 55.

The day began with equal chances of winning for both sides with Australia needing 185 runs with seven wickets in hand and Sri Lanka encouraged by a spin-friendly pitch. O’Keefe, who came to bat with an injured hamstring, swept Sandakan for a boundary, but little did anyone realise at that stage that would be the last of Australia’s runs for the match. Ever since their golden era ended in 2007 with the retirements of legendary bowlers Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath, a succession of Australian teams under different captains have endured an abhorrent time in the subcontinent (and Pakistan’s home base of the UAE) yielding just one win over that period.

“We are still confident. We just have to find a way”, he said.

His wrong’un fooled the Australians, and some of his stock balls spun a long way – Joe Burns can attest to that. For others, it might be sitting on the crease and using their bat out in front. I know it looked ugly and it probably didn’t look great.

The initial phase of the first Test at Pallekele International Stadium seemed to reiterate the same.

In the lead up to the first Test, Smith and his deputy David Warner talked publicly about Australia’s batting approach revolving around a more sedate method of attack. “We regrouped, trained really well and prepared to the best”. The appeal was subdued as it appeared it may have been a bump ball, but replays showed a clean hit and catch.

The enormity of the unlikely triumph was also felt when Sri Lankan President offered “special congratulations to Mendis”.

Despite Nevill and O’Keefe’s defiance for the 9th wicket, Australia lost the Test by 106 runs. “Jon Holland is a class bowler, he’s done pretty well in state cricket and having a left-arm orthodox bowler in these conditions is a must”. Get a FREE 2-week trial now & stream LIVE within minutes.

O’ Keefe took three wickets in the match.

The previous slowest partnership – consisting of 100 or more balls – between an Australian pair belonged to Jason Gillespie and Mark Waugh who went at 1.29 an over in the 1998-99 Ashes Test at the WACA. Kusal Mendis was the man of the match.

Sri Lanka were trailing Australia by 86 runs in the first innings and slumped to 86-4 before Mendis turned the innings around.

Earlier in the morning, Kusal Mendis fell for a marathon 176 but the Sri Lankan tail wagged as the hosts, resuming on 282 for six, posted 353 all out in their second innings.

Herath’s four and five wickets in the first and second innings respectively floored the visiting batsmen on a typical sub-continent track that assisted spin bowling.