Photograph: Ishara S Kodikara/AFP/Getty Images
Righto, that’s it from us today. Thanks to Rob for manning the early stint and to you for following along with us. We’ll be back for the second Test in Galle next week. Goodbye!
The Captain’s Speak:
Dhananjaya de Silva:
(On the importance of the toss?) It’s very important. Chasing 600 runs is not easy. The wicket was not that hard but the ball was turning. But the batters have to put their hands up and put the opposition under pressure. Losing hurts always. We had our chances, reviews and catches dropped. We made chances but didn’t take them. We have to put our bodies on the line and play well. They are champion side, they are in the WTC final for a reason, so we have to up our game for the next Test.”
Steve Smith:
I thought we started the Test beautifully, Usman and Travis up top really set the tone. Usman’s innings was outstanding, to get his first double hundred, the way he went about it and the shots he played. The pressure he put on the bowlers was outstanding, and throughout that innings we had plenty of good partnerships. Getting 650 allowed us to bowl twice.
I thought Starcy did a tremendous job with the new ball and the spinners did a great job as well. I thought the bowlers bowled really well in tandem, the beauty of having three frontline spinners is you can just rotate and keep guys as fresh as possible.
(On scoring 10k Test runs) I never thought I’d score this many runs. Playing just one Test for Australia was a dream growing up. To have played over a 100 now and scored 10,000 runs… it’s a dream come true. And it was nice to contribute in this game as well with a hundred.”
Usman Khawaja is Player of the Match.
It’s a batters game eh? Kidding. His innings did set up the game and gave the spinners plenty of runs to play with. He spoke really well after the game.
It’s just nice to score some runs and contribute to a winning team. Galle’s always a tough place to play for us, so it’s nice to get a good start. To be honest, a month ago I was on the top of the world too, we won (against India) 3-1. Cricket is a team game and you want to score all the time, but it’s not always possible. So hopefully when you don’t score someone else does, and when someone else doesn’t, you score. That’s the point.
That 3-1 against was tough work, we were all very tired. But to come here and start the series off well, we’re very happy. I’m 38 now and this is my fifth trip to Sri Lanka. I’ve made all the mistakes I know I can make! I know there are certain ways I’m happy to get out and certain ways I’m not. I just work around that, that’s the most important thing.”
An all round impressive performance by Australia, they were ruthless with the bat and made huge runs in their first and only innings. Usman Khawaja showed that there is plenty of life in his Test career despite his rather downbeat pre-Test proclamations. Steve Smith looked somewhere near his best with the bat and moved back into the captaincy role with aplomb and Josh Inglis scored a memorable maiden Test century in front of his proud parents. Has it been mentioned that he spent his formative years in Leeds? Thought not.
The Ausssie bowlers also did the business, Matt Kuhnemann taking 9-149 in his return to the side, Nathan Lyon 7-165 and Mitch Starc chipping in with 3-27.
Sri Lanka will have to lick their wounds and come again in the second Test next week. It was a bruising defeat for them, the heaviest in their Test history and only the second time they’ve been beaten by an innings in Galle, usually such a stronghold for them.
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Meanwhile… Australia’s women have whitewashed England in the Ashes
Australia win by innings and 242 runs
There it is! Jeffrey Vandersay goes to a plucky maiden Test fifty with a drive for four and a smear down the ground for SIX but he then attempts a wild heave and the spliced catch is taken at point! Matt Kuhnemann finishes with nine wickets in the match and it’s a thumping win for Australia.
54th over: Sri Lanka 237-9 (Vandersay 43, Fernando 6) Murphy can’t get the final wicket, over to Kuhnemann…
53rd over: Sri Lanka 236-9 (Vandersay 42, Fernando 6) Sri Lanka rack up an all run four as Vandersay clubs a Lyon full toss through a very vacant mid on. Starc just got the one over, Todd Murphy is coming back to see if he can close this Test out.
52nd over: Sri Lanka 231-9 (Vandersay 37, Fernando 6) Mitchell Starc is called upon to deliver the coup de grace but he can’t get the Aussies over the line in his first over, Vandersay clips for two and then gets the single off the final ball to keep strike for the next over.
51st over: Sri Lanka 228-9 (Vandersay 34, Fernando 6) Lyon to Fernando. Anything you can do Jeffrey… the number 11 clears his front leg and smears away over wide long on for SIX.
50th over: Sri Lanka 222-9 (Vandersay 34, Fernando 0) Vandersay attacks once more and launches Kuhnemann down the ground for SIX. He’s got his eyes on a fifty here.
49th over: Sri Lanka 214-9 (Vandersay 26, Fernando 0) Vandersay slog sweeps Lyon for a boundary and Australia’s wait for victory goes on.
48th over: Sri Lanka 209-9 (Vandersay 21, Fernando 0) Asitha Fernando is the last man. He has about seven Aussie fielders up in his grille as he takes guard. He pays them nevermind and survives the over.
WICKET! Peiris b Kuhnemann 0 (Sri Lanka 209-9)
Bowled him! Kuhnemann gets one to skid on and Peiris’s timbers are rearranged. Australia one more away from the sealing the win in Galle.
47th over: Sri Lanka 209-8 (Vandersay 21, Peiris 0) The Aussie fielders swarm the batters, they’ve deployed the ‘aggressive fielding’ option on Brian Lara Cricket ‘99. IYKYK. Vandersay takes advantage of the acres of space in the field and picks up two boundaries with reverse-sweeps. I like the cut of his jib.
46th over: Sri Lanka 201-8 (Vandersay 13, Peiris 0) The Aussies burn a review for an lbw appeal as Vandersay got a huge inside edge onto pad.
45th over: Sri Lanka 200-8 (Vandersay 12, Peiris 0) Peiris somehow survives six consecutive balls from Nathan Lyon.
44th over: Sri Lanka 200-8 (Vandersay 12, Peiris 0) Vandersay is here to have some fun, he sweeps for four and then punches Matthew Kuhnemann through point for his second boundary of the over. That brings up Sri Lanka’s 200 hundred. Marginal gains.
43rd over: Sri Lanka 192-8 (Vandersay 4, Peiris 0) Lyon fluffs his lines with the hat-trick delivery, dropping too short and new batter Peiris defends on the back foot with relative ease. It’s still a wicket maiden and Australia fancy polishing this off before tea.
WICKET! Jayasuriya b Lyon 1 (Sri Lanka 192-8)
Lyon has two in two! A wicket with the last ball of his previous over and he spins one past Jayasuriya’s defences and the stumps are splayed! Hat-trick time…
42nd over: Sri Lanka 192-7 (Jayasuriya 2, Vandersay 4) Jeffrey Dexter Francis Vandersay is the new batter. Kuhnemann drops short and the aforementioned rocks back and punches for four.
41st over: Sri Lanka 187-7 (Jayasuriya 0, Vandersay 0) Australia go for the kill now, men all around the bat and plenty of chatter.
WICKET! Mendis st Carey b Lyon 34 (Sri Lanka 187-7)
Mendis is gone now too! Lyon is hit for two boundaries but keeps giving it some air, Mendis wanders out of his crease to work to leg and the ball turns just enough to leave him stranded and Alex Carey does the honours with the bails.
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40th over: Sri Lanka 179-6 (Kusal 25, Jayasuriya 0) Prabath Jayasuriya is in with the bat for the second time today, it’s not been a great one for the home side, they’ll need to dust themselves off quickly before going again in the second Test in just a few days time.
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WICKET! Dhananjaya de Silva c Webster b Kuhnemann 41 (Sri Lanka 179-6)
Kuhnemann gets another! Dhananjaya clubs him down the ground for a handsome SIX but then attempts the same shot next ball and splays it to Webster at short cover. Australia have prised their way into the tail.
39th over: Sri Lanka 174-5 (Dhananjaya 35, Kusal 25) Lyon whirls into action. Six balls on the money but stoutly defended. These two have stopped the rot and are frustrating Australia… and those of us who fancied a short and sweet shift. KIDDING.
38th over: Sri Lanka 174-5 (Dhananjaya 35, Kusal 25) Dhananjaya paddles Murphy away fine for four and then drives away through the covers for another boundary. Steve Smith calls for Nathan Lyon to try and get the breakthrough.
37th over: Sri Lanka 165-5 (Dhananjaya 26, Kusal 25) Head drops short and is flayed away through point by Kusal, that shot brings up the fifty partnership between this pair.
36th over: Sri Lanka 161-5 (Dhananjaya 26, Kusal 21) Murphy hops and skips in and bowls with a fast arm, flannel tucked into the back of his trews. He goes a smidge too full and Dhananjaya drives away through cover for four.
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35th over: Sri Lanka 155-5 (Dhananjaya 21, Kusal 20) Travis Head replaces Matt Kuhnemann - who I actually thought looked like he could take a wicket every ball before drinks. Kusal sweeps for two and each batter nudges a single. Sri Lanka very much playing for pride, they are still 334 runs adrift of Australia’s first innings.
34th over: Sri Lanka 151-5 (Dhananjaya 20, Kusal 17) Thanks Rob, hello all. Wickets galore today, are Australia going to finish this off quickly or will we see some grit and skill from Dhananjaya and Kusal? The ball is spitting less sharply off the surface now it has lost some of its lacquer but it is by no means easy out there.
33rd over: Sri Lanka 150-5 (Dhananjaya 20, Kusal 16) Right, that’s all from me; Jim Wallace will talk through the denouement/an unlikely sixth-wicket partnership of 700.
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REVIEW! Sri Lanka 145-5 (Kusal not out 15)
Kusal Mendis reviews successfully after being given out LBW to Kuhnemann. He missed a sweep and was hit in front, but the third umpire Joel Wilson decided there was a thin under-edge onto the pad. I don’t think the evidence was conclusive, and therefore the on-field decision should have stood, but I doubt it will make much difference to the outcome.
There were two identical murmurs on UltraEdge, the second as the ball passed the bat. But the first occurred when it was nowhere near the bat, so I don’t think you can conclusively say there was a bottom edge. Equally, had it been given not out on the field I don’t think it should have been overturned.
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32nd over: Sri Lanka 145-5 (Dhananjaya 16, Kusal 15) Todd Murphy replaces Nathan Lyon. Kusal shapes to pull a delivery, only for it to turn grotesquely and follow him outside leg stump; all he can do is force it back to the bowler.
Kusal has a bit of fortune later in the over when an uppish pull shot flies wide of short midwicket. That could easily have gone to hand. Instead Kusal gets a single and Dhananjaya plays a deft late cut for four.
31st over: Sri Lanka 138-5 (Dhananjaya 11, Kusal 13) Kusal skids back to pull Kuhnemann for four. The over ends with another unplayable delivery to Dhananjaya that pitches on middle and growls past the outside edge. Good luck playing that.
30th over: Sri Lanka 133-5 (Dhananjaya 11, Kusal 8) Dhananjaya pushes Lyon stylishly through extra cover for four. Lyon moves around the wicket and is worked for a couple of singles. Australia know that, with Sri Lanka’s tail, one more wicket should lead to a quick kill.
29th over: Sri Lanka 127-5 (Dhananjaya 6, Kusal 7) Four from Kuhnemann’s over.
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28th over: Sri Lanka 123-5 (Dhananjaya 5, Kusal 4) The ball is really misbehaving now. Dhananjaya yanks has hand off the bat when he’s hit on the thumb by Lyon, who is enjoying being the main man after his walk-on part in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series.
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27th over: Sri Lanka 122-5 (Dhananjaya 5, Kusal 3) Kuhnemann beats Dhananjaya with a vicious delivery that turns and bounces at pace. There are four catchers waiting on the off side, including Labuschagne on his knees in the gully.
There’s a race on to see which Australian cricket team can wrap up victory first. The men need five wickets, the women four.
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26th over: Sri Lanka 121-5 (Dhananjaya 5, Kusal 2) The Aussies are one wicket away from a very long tail, so this should be over by tea. Nobody has given Sri Lanka a hammering like this, not even in the 1980s when they were finding their way as a Test nation. Their heaviest defeat, against India at Nagpur in 2017, was by an innings and 239 runs. Australia lead by 368 after Dhananjaya de Silva pulls a boundary.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 114-5 (Mathews c Head b Lyon 41)
Australia are rushing towards an innings victory. Mathews tries to reverse sweep Lyon, gets a top edge onto his shoulder and is well caught by Head at short leg.
25th over: Sri Lanka 114-4 (Mathews 41, Dhananjaya 0) Six wickets in the match now for Kuhnemann; he’ll want a few more before the game is over.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 114-4 (Kamindu c Starc b Kuhnemann 32)
Kamindu Mendis’s skittish cameo of 32 from 26 balls comes to an end. After thumping four more over the bowler’s head, he was beaten in the flight and belted Kuhnemann straight to wide long on. I’d argue that Kamindu is better than that, but I guess a Test average of 68 brooks few arguments.
24th over: Sri Lanka 108-3 (Mathews 41, Kamindu 26) Lyon screams for LBW when Mathews misses a reverse sweep. Smith decides not to review, though I must say it looked pretty close. Mathews may just have been outside the line.
Nope – replays show Mathews would have been out had Australia reviewed. They’ll regret that when he brings up his 300.
23rd over: Sri Lanka 103-3 (Mathews 40, Kamindu 22) Mathews tucks Kamindu through midwicket for four to bring up Sri Lanka’s hundred.
Meanwhile, at the MCG, a genius by the name of Alana King is spinning Australia to an historic whitewash.
22nd over: Sri Lanka 97-3 (Mathews 35, Kamindu 21) Kamindu reverse sweeps Lyon for four more. He’s playing some brilliant attacking strokes but it all feels a bit skittish. He he has a moment of fortune when an edge deflects off Carey and just short of Smith of slip.
21st over: Sri Lanka 91-3 (Mathews 35, Kamindu 15) Kamindu Mendis is on the attack. He reverse sweeps Kuhnemann deftly for four, then wallops a slog-sweep for six. Kamindu has such a pure technique that it’s easy to forget how destructive he can be; he’s already his 23 sixes in his short Test career.
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20th over: Sri Lanka 79-3 (Mathews 34, Kamindu 4) Kamindu Mendis has had a lean trot by his standards, five Test innings without a fifty. He’s still averaging 71. A reverse sweep off Lyon is well blocked by slip, then an orthodox sweep doesn’t beat short third man. Another maiden.
19th over: Sri Lanka 79-3 (Mathews 34, Kamindu 4) Kuhnemann replaces Murphy and troubles Mathews with a couple of deliveries that spit more than expected. A maiden.
18th over: Sri Lanka 79-3 (Mathews 34, Kamindu 4) Kamindu Mendis is up and running straight away after lunch, slapping his third ball for four.
Play continues in the Women’s Ashes Test, with England 62 for 1 in their second innings, still 208 behind. Jonathan Howcroft has the latest.
Lunch: Sri Lanka trail by 414 runs
Australia are seven wickets away from a crushing victory in Galle. They took eight in the morning session, including seven in 45 balls across both innings, with Matt Kuhnemann collecting his second Test five-for.
Dinesh Chandimal and Angelo Mathews held them up for a while in a partnership of 69 before Chandimal fell for the second time this morning to Nathan Lyon, a bowler he has previously dominated.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 75-3 (Chandimal c Head b Lyon 31)
Steve Smith’s hearing is in tip-top shape! The ball brushed Chandimal’s glove, hit the thigh and looped into the hands of Travis Head. A perfect way for Australia to end a brilliant session.
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17.2 overs: Sri Lanka 75-2 (Chandimal 31, Mathews 34) Lyon has successive appeals turned down against Chandimal, the first for LBW and the second for a bat-pad catch at short leg. Lyon didn’t seem too interested in the second – but Steve Smith heard something and went for the review without even talking to Lyon.
17th over: Sri Lanka 75-2 (Chandimal 31, Mathews 34) Mathews hits three successive boundaries off Murphy, an edge wide of slip followed by two empathic, almost disdainful sweeps. Have some of them apples.
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16th over: Sri Lanka 63-2 (Chandimal 31, Mathews 22) Lyon switches back over the wicket to get Chandimal and gets one to turn sharply from outside off stump; Chandimal manages to drop it safely on the off side. Australia would love to pick up one more before lunch.
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15th over: Sri Lanka 61-2 (Chandimal 30, Mathews 21) Murphy replaces Kuhnemann, who bowled a relatively untidy spell of 3-0-10-0, and is fiddled wide of slip for two by Mathews. He isn’t playing with the same fluency as Chandimal but he knows how to make ugly runs. Talking of runs, Sri Lanka trail by 428.
“Are we allowed to make them follow on again?” asks Dan Harrison. “Win the game by two innings and x number of runs?!”
Only if you tell Mitch Starc he has to put his bowling boots back on.
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14th over: Sri Lanka 57-2 (Chandimal 29, Mathews 18) Apologies, we’re having one or two technical problems. You aren’t missing much – Chandimal in particular looks in control and is milking singles with minimal risk. Fifteen minutes until lunch.
13th over: Sri Lanka 53-2 (Chandimal 26, Mathews 17)
12th over: Sri Lanka 52-2 (Chandimal 26, Mathews 16) ”Why are the boundary ropes so far inside the ground?” wonders Sarah Sherman. I’m not certain but I think that’s fairly common in these six-hitting days.
11th over: Sri Lanka 49-2 (Chandimal 24, Mathews 15) Mathews cuts Kuhnemann into the ground behind the stumps. The ball loops up off Carey’s boot and is brilliantly caught by Webster, diving forward from slip. The umpires go upstairs to check both the catch, which was clean, and whether the ball hit Carey straight on the foot. Alas for Australia, it didn’t; it bounced a fraction short and then looped up on off the boot. Lovely catch though.
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10th over: Sri Lanka 47-2 (Chandimal 23, Mathews 14) A double bowling change, with Nathan Lyon on for Murphy. Mathews scuffs a reverse sweep just past Carey for four.; Smith, standing at slip, had moved to his right in anticipation of a catch. I doubt he’d have been able to reach it even if he’d stayed still.
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9th over: Sri Lanka 39-2 (Chandimal 21, Mathews 8) Matt Kuhnemann replaces Starc, who bowled a classy new-ball spell of 4-1-11-1. His first ball drifts outside leg stump and is dragged round the corner for four by Chandimal; another errant delivery later in the over goes for four leg-byes.
8th over: Sri Lanka 28-2 (Chandimal 15, Mathews 7) There’s an umpire review for a stumping when Chandimal is beaten by an arm ball from Murphy. His back foot stayed grounded behind the line. Batting is starting to look a bit more comfortable for Sri Lanka, though it would be still be a surprise if this game goes to a fifth day.
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7th over: Sri Lanka 25-2 (Chandimal 12, Mathews 7) Chandimal, who has looked in fine touch all game, drive Starc for successive boundaries. Starc responds with a growling inswinger that hits Chandimal somewhere around the stomach and then a yorker that is well defended. It’s an engaging contest.
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6th over: Sri Lanka 16-2 (Chandimal 3, Mathews 7) Mathews skids back to cut Murphy and is beaten. The rest of the over is milked for five runs, a reminder that while this pitch it’s spinning, it’s far from a bunsen.
5th over: Sri Lanka 11-2 (Chandimal 1, Mathews 4) Starc has two slips and a leg gully for Chandimal, ensuring he can threaten both edges as well as that inviting front pad. Chandimal scrunches a single into the covers to get off the mark.
4th over: Sri Lanka 10-2 (Chandimal 0, Mathews 4) That was Todd Murphy’s first Test wicket since dismissed Jimmy Anderson (remember him) at The Oval 18 months ago.
The new batter Angelo Mathews is hit on the body after missing pull, then reverse sweeps for four to get off the mark.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 6-2 (Karunaratne b Murphy 0)
Well at least he didn’t get out to Mitchell Starc. But this is a horrible dismissal for Karunaratne, who offers no stroke to a ball that runs straight on to hit the off stump. Sri Lanka have now lost seven wickets for 15 in the last 45 balls.
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3rd over: Sri Lanka 6-1 (Karunaratne 0, Chandimal 0) Dinesh Chandimal is back at the crease barely 40 minutes after his first-innings dismissal. Starc enquires for LBW after another inswinger thumps into the pad; that time it was missing leg.
Starc is almost uniquely menacing when he gets the new ball to swing back into the right-handers.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 6-1 (O Fernando LBW b Starc 6)
Classic bowling from Mitchell Starc, a full-length inswinger to the right-hander that traps Fernando plumb in front. He reviews, don’t ask me why; it was hitting middle a third of the way up.
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2nd over: Sri Lanka 6-0 (O Fernando 6, Karunaratne 0) The bespectacled offie Todd Murphy takes the new ball, a slight surprise given Kuhnemann’s success with the new ball in the first innings. Murphy starts around the wicket to the right-handed Fernando, with two slips and a short leg waiting to do some business.
Fernando misses a reverse sweep and is beaten by the bounce. He gets hold of it next ball, fetching the first boundary through extra cover.
1st over: Sri Lanka 1-0 (O Fernando 1, Karunaratne 0) Early swing for Mitchell Starc, who smiles broadly after being Karunaratne first up. He has an outstanding record against Karunaratne, having dismissed his nine times in Tests at a head-to-head average of 17. Since 2016 the head-to-head average is barely over 10.
Australia enforce the follow on
And frankly you’d hope so with a lead of 489 runs. They’ve been far too good for Sri Lanka, whose last five wickets disappeared in the space of 26 balls.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 165 all out (Vandersay c Starc b Kuhnemann 4)
Five wickets for Matt Kuhnemann! Vandersay hacks him high into the cover, where Starc takes a simple catch. Kuhnemann smiles a little sheepishly and his teammates charge across in celebration; they could barely be happier for him. He leads Australia off, raising the ball to the crowd after finishing with excellent figures of 18.2-3-63-5. He’ll be bowling again very soon.
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52nd over: Sri Lanka 161-9 (Vandersay 0, A Fernando 0) Now Lyon has seven men plus the keeper around the bat for Asitha Fernando, woh edges his first ball along the ground to second slip.
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WICKET! Sri Lanka 161-9 (Peiris c Inglis b Lyon 5)
Nathan Lyon makes short work of the left-handed Nishan Peiris, who slashes a boundary before bat-padding a defensive stroke to short leg. Josh Inglis moves smartly to his right to take the catch.
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51st over: Sri Lanka 157-8 (Vandersay 0, Peiris 1) There are six fielders round the bat for the new batter Peiris: short leg, gully, slip, leg slip, leg gully and short leg. An inside-edge lands just short of leg gully.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 156-8 (Jayasuriya st Carey b Kuhnemann 0)
Another one. Jayasuriya runs past a lovely delivery that pitches on middle and growls past the edge; Alex Carey does the rest. Sri Lanka have lost three for none in 13 balls and Matthew Kuhnemann is one wicket away from his second Test five-for.
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50th over: Sri Lanka 156-7 (Jayasuriya 0, Vandersay 0) There’s surely no doubt Australia will enforce the follow-on when the time comes. It’s not like they need to give the seamers a break, or that there’s any risk of them losing the game with a lead of almost 500.
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WICKET! Sri Lanka 156-7 (Chandimal LBW b Lyon 72)
The change of angle works for Nathan Lyon, who has dismissed Chandimal for only the second time in Tests. Chandimal missed a reverse sweep and was hit on the back thigh by a lovely delivery that curved onto off and middle and turned sharply.
Chandimal reviewed, mainly because he’s the last remaining batter, but it was hitting leg stump and he’s on his way for a punchy 72.
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49th over: Sri Lanka 156-6 (Chandimal 72, Jayasuriya 0) There’s isn’t much Sri Lankan batting left – Prabath Jayasuriya, the No8, has a Test average of 8.41 – so one wicket could bring five. Jayasuriya is beaten by his first two deliveries, both of which rip off the stumps to beat the edge.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 156-6 (Kusal Mendis c Murphy b Kuhnemann 21)
Kusal Mendis falls into the trap. Australia were happy for him to slog-sweep against the spin, knowing he could easily top-edge it. That’s exactly what happened and Todd Murphy took a excellent running catch at deepish midwicket.
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48th over: Sri Lanka 156-5 (Chandimal 72, Kusal Mendis 22) A great stat from the host broadcaster. Chandimal has a head-to-head average of 221 against Nathan Lyon in Test cricket. Make that 223 after a couple of singles in this over. Lyon has moved around the wicket to Chandimal but not Mendis.
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47th over: Sri Lanka 152-5 (Chandimal 70, Kusal Mendis 19) Mendis fetches Kuhnemann from well outside off stump, slog-sweeping through midwicket for four. Australia won’t mind that with the ball turning away from the bat.
46th over: Sri Lanka 145-5 (Chandimal 68, Kusal Mendis 14) Mendis lunges at a beautiful delivery from Lyon that zips past the edge. Carey has the bails off in a flash but Mendis’s back foot stayed grounded. It feels like a wicket is imminent.
45th over: Sri Lanka 144-5 (Chandimal 67, Kusal Mendis 14) Kuhnemann is getting bounce as well as turn and has started very well. Chandimal, surprised by a ball that spits from middle stump, does well to soften his hands and drop it short of the fielder who has just been moved to silly point.
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England Women have had a better morning at the MCG, taking the last five Australian wickets for nine runs. They are miles behind, though, and there’s every chance Australia will complete a whitewash today.
44th over: Sri Lanka 143-5 (Chandimal 66, Kusal Mendis 14) Nathan Lyon’s first ball induces a top-edged sweep from Chandimal that lands safely. Mendis then crashes a pull into the left knee of Head at short leg. Oof, that looked painful.
Lyon has a slightly different field: slip, short leg and leg gully.
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43rd over: Sri Lanka 138-5 (Chandimal 64, Kusal Mendis 11) Kuhnemann starts around the wicket, with two slips and a short leg for both batsmen. There’s some turn straight away, albeit relatively slow, and Chandimal and Mendis take a single apiece. A low-key start.
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Nathan Lyon talks to our own Adam Collins
We can’t do anything about the weather. But we’ve rocked up here today and there’s some sunlight and some heat coming out of the ground. It’s gonna be a challenging morning and an exciting one.
We hope the pitch will deteriorate, you expect that on the subcontinent. Hopefully we’ll get a full day in today.
I’ve played against Dinesh [Chandimal] for a long time now – he’s a class player, isn’t he? Hopefully we can create some more problems for him to solve.
[On Matt Kuhnemann and Todd Murphy] Our preparation has been pretty spot on. We thoroughly enjoyed our time in Dubai. Their young, they’re learning, they’re asking questions. It’s a pretty amazing group to be working with.
I’ve got nothing but love for the ground here at Galle. The Sri Lankan culture and people… it’s an amazing place to tour.
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Less than ten minutes until play resumes. It looks a beautiful sunny day in Galle. There’s a small chance of rain this afternoon but apart from that the radar looks clear.
Weather permitting, there should be plenty of time for Australia to force victory in this game, almost 200 overs. That’s roughly a wicket every 13 overs on a pitch that is already offering a fair bit for the spinners.
The Women’s Ashes Test is about to resume at the MCG. Jonathan Howcroft is on duty for that one.
Preamble
Morning folks. Shall we try that one again? Only 27 overs were possible on the third day in Galle but the forecast is much better today and Australia should be able to push towards victory. All things being equal, there should be a sighting of an endangered tactic: the follow-on.
Sri Lanka will resume on 136 for 5, still a mildly terrifying 518 runs behind, with Dinesh Chandimal on 63 and Kusal Mendis on 10. Expect an early blast from Mitchell Starc and then spin, lots of spin.
