That’s it from us. On behalf of all at the Guardian and our team of OBO bloggers, thank you for your company, and your always entertaining emails, during the series.
Over and OUT!
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Here’s our match report of the second Test.
Australia’s captain Steve Smith is the Player of the Series. He scored a century in his sole innings in each Test to make it five hundreds from his past six Tests. Smith’s 272 runs at the sprightly average of 136 also made him the series’ second highest run-scorer. Let’s not forget his epic feat of becoming Australia’s first player to take 200 Test catches.
It was a really good series. We played really well form the outset. The way the batters were able to adapt to the conditions was amazing. We scored enough runs through the series. All the bowlers did the job. Starc was quick and the spinners went to work.
On preparation: Since 2016, the first time I came here, the guys have developed so many different plans. It is great to see the guys play the spinners, really good spinners. It was amazing. We had a really good training camp in Dubai where guys were able to work on their methods. Usman and Carey and Inglis use the sweep a lot. Myself and Marnus get down the track. Travis uses the feet.
On the captaincy: It has been really fun. We have got such a great group. The way the guys have played was exceptional. It is fun captaining in this part of the world. The intricacies and the movement.
On the 259-run partnership with Alex Carey It was an important one at that time. Alex played really well. He put the pressure back on the bowlers. He batted really quickly. It was great to see Alex play so well. I hope it continues that way.
Australia's first series sweep in Asia in almost two decades! #SLvAUS @ARamseyCricket's report from Galle: https://t.co/aZL7gxNJ8t pic.twitter.com/ONkkYehVm5
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) February 9, 2025
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Sri Lanka captain Dhananjaya de Silva has had a series to forget, failing to fire a shot with the bat and criticised for weak captaincy throughout the series.
We are very disappointed to be in the losing side. The conditions are very suitable for us. We haven’t had our opportunities to get into the fame. The Aussies showed why they are in the WTC final. I am talking about the first innings, be it batting or bowling. We haven’t done well. We had the best time to bat this time, but 260 was not enough. Losing four wickets in an hour will not give you a win. The consistency was lacking with our spinners.
Alex Carey has been named Player of the Match for his magnificent 156 in Australia’s first innings. Carey had a series to remember, brilliant with the gloves and ranking third on the run-scoring roll of honour with 202 runs at an average of 202.
Congratulations to Dimuth – outstanding career. It has been a pleasure to play with him. [Batting at No 5]…Josh [Inglis] went down with a spasm and I was elevated up. Smudge [Steve Smith] was great in this innings and he showed his class. [Conventional shots] Just using those at the right time, manipulating the fields. The bowling allowed at the time. The wicket was good when the ball was pitched up in the good length. [Keeping] is fun. We have got some quality spinners. In the subcontinent, you are always in the game. Full credit to the bowlers.
Alex Carey reflects on his superb hundred, the "blueprint" laid down by Steve Smith, and the state of the second #SLvAUS Test pic.twitter.com/hQSf0KaDgR
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) February 7, 2025
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A nine wicket defeat wasn’t how he would’ve liked to go out, but Dimuth Karunaratane, a mainstay of Sri Lankan cricket for a decade, has played his 100th and final Test.
It is a long career with my friends and my family. I am bit emotional because I am leaving them. Wherever I go, I will be with them and will give them support. When you play 100 Test matches, it is not easy. When I started to play Test cricket, my goal was 100 Tests matches, achieving 10000 runs. Luckily I was into cricket and playing cricket for so long, I am happy. Want to thank SLC, my friends and family. I want to get into coaching. I will be going to Australia to learn the levels. I want to spend time with my family and will then move into coaching. I would like to thank all my fans, when I am doing well and even when I am not. My teammates here, it has been a pleasure sharing the dressing room with you. This is cricket, you have to go one day.
Australia win the second Test by nine wickets to sweep series 2-0
Australia canter to victory, a massive nine wicket triumph to go with the first Test win by an innings and 242 runs. Comprehensive indeed.
From the moment Travis Head smashed four boundaries from the first over of the series and marched to 654 for 6 (dec), Australia have been a juggernaut. Despite a few flurries of grit from the home side, Steve Smith’s men have completely overwhelmed the Sri Lankans with bat and ball.
Smith has had a series to remember, captaining with flair and fire. He scored a century in each Test to make it five tons from six Tests and his 272 runs at an average of 136 made him the series’ second highest run-scorer after Usman Khawaja (295 at 147.5). He also became the first Australian to reach 200 Test catches. Alex Carey ranked third on the run-scoring roll of honour with 202 runs at an average of 202.
Despite breaking his thumb a few weeks ago, Matthew Kuhnemann finished the series as leading wicket-taker with 16 scalps at an average of 17. Nathan Lyon was close behind with 14 wickets at 22.5. Prabath Jayasuriya’s nine wickets at 40.4 made him the third-highest wicket-taker in the series.
Australia have retained the Warne–Muralidaran Trophy and secured their first series win in Sri Lanka since 2011!
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18th over: Australia 75-1 (Khawaja 27, Labuschagne 26) Nice moment now for Dimuth Karunaratne who gets a chance to bowl in his 100th and final Test. He has two wickets from those 100 Tests and will seek a third while bowling in sunglasses. Classy. Labuschagne runs a risky two. One run to win. A simple single delivers the killing stroke. Australia have clinched the Test by nine wickets and won the series 2-0!
A PERFECT REDEMPTION FOR STEVE SMITH 🐐
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) February 9, 2025
- Lost the Test series 3-0 in SL in 2016 as Captain.
- Won the Test series 2-0 in SL in 2025 as Captain. pic.twitter.com/4bGwc07AQ7
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17th over: Australia 72-1 (Khawaja 27, Labuschagne 23) Huge shout for lbw as Khawaja sweeps and misses Peiris. There was a big noise in there too and first slip’s sprawling catch made it a bob each way for lbw or catch. Umpire says no to the appeal but Sri Lanka review. The noise we heard is bat on ground and the ball is pitching outside off. Not out. Khawaja celebrates by getting onto his toes and working three through the onside. Australia are one shot away now. Labuschagne decides on grind not glory, dabbing a single. Three runs between Australia and victory.
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16th over: Australia 68-1 (Khawaja 24, Labuschagne 22) Jayasuriya enters his sixth wicket looking for an 81st wicket at Galle. In 27 tentative balls at the crease, Labuschagne has looked the most likely but the misfiring batter gets on top of the first delivery and whips it off the pads to the boundary. Best shot of his innings so far and it takes Australia within seven runs of victory. He swings big at a yorker but can’t connect. Nor at the next two. Will Australia win it next over?
15th over: Australia 62-1 (Khawaja 24, Labuschagne 18) Khawaja sweeps Peiris fine for a single. Labuschagne takes a riskier aproach, smothering the spin with an awkward paddle shot that nonetheless runs away for FOUR. Australia are 13 runs away.
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14th over: Australia 56-1 (Khawaja 23, Labuschagne 13) Ouch! Kusal Mendis has copped a ball in the throat from a ricochet off Khawaja’s bat. Labuschagne tapped it off the hip and ran but in grounding the bat Usman has sent the return throw into his ‘keeper’s jugular. The little ‘keeper, who batted bravely in both innings, is okay and we resume. And Khawaja’s muffed drive catches an inside edge and almost dribbles back off his boot and into the stumps. Close! Australia need 19 runs to win.
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13th over: Australia 54-1 (Khawaja 22, Labuschagne 12) Peiris is on the money with his first three but Khawaja, ever-composed, gets a full bat on each without trying to score. Usman gets more width on the third and picks it up on the half volley for a single. Labuschagne is NOT composed. He steps back a mile to try and cut a wider ball. Misses it by half a metre. Living dangerously Marnus!
12th over: Australia 52-1 (Khawaja 21, Labuschagne 11) Khawaja drives an easy single to Lahiru Kumara at midoff who is caught flat footed. Labuschagne steps down and flourishes a full blade at the next one. He doesn’t middle it but there’s enough steel in his wrists to spray it to the rope. Streaky but it brings up the fifty for Australia. Jayasuriya responds with a peach that beats Marnus’s crouched defensive shot.
11th over: Australia 47-1 (Khawaja 20, Labuschagne 7) Peiris enters his fifth over. He got 3-94 in the first innings including the scalps of Head, Khawaja and Connolly and this is another tight over. Labuschagne gets on his toes to work a solitary run off the hip. Khawaja takes a legside ball for another single. Australia now need 28 runs for victory.
10th over: Australia 44-1 (Khawaja 18, Labuschagne 6) Jayasuriya has Labuschagne pinned. The struggling Australian No 3 gets into a low crouch but the bowler still beats the lunged bat twice. Chastened, Marnus pulls his head in and plays elaborate defensive strokes to the rest of the over.
9th over: Australia 44-1 (Khawaja 18, Labuschagne 6) Peiris floats it, Labuschagne flogs it. That wasn’t an entirely convincing shot but the ball was full and, with positive intent, he swung the bat and it squirted away for four. Australia need 31 runs to win.
8th over: Australia 39-1 (Khawaja 18, Labuschagne 1) Marnus Labuschagne is the new batter. A miserable series might get a sweet finish if he can hit the winning runs here. He starts well, rolling the wrists over one to get off the mark.
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WICKET! Head c Mendis b Jayasuriya 20 (Australia 38-1)
Head goes! Jayasuriya strikes with a sharper, faster ball that skidded through outside off. Head stepped back and tried to cut and only managed to snick it straight into wicketkeeper Mendis’s gloves.
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7th over: Australia 38-0 (Khawaja 18, Head 20) Peiris continues and Khawaja advances and taps to mid-on for a quick single. Head drives at the next but miscues, getting a run from the inside edge. Peiris is getting good spin in this over and a faster ball that slides on troubles Khawaja. Now it’s Peiris troubled as Khawaja stepping down to squash the spin and loft one down the ground for a boundary. Nice shot. Australia need 37 runs.
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6th over: Australia 32-0 (Khawaja 13, Head 19) Finally, Prabath Jayasuriya is thrown the ball. He’s got a legside field and is trying to angle it back at Head’s pads. But full balls aren’t gonna cut it against The Hammer. Thrown a half-volley, Head sweeps hard for FOUR. Too easy for the 2025 Allan Border Medallist. Now he throws out a pad at one on a fifth stump line and it spins back sufficiently to warrant a shout. Umpire says no but a desperate Sri Lanka will review. Not out and missing off stump by a bat’s width. A bemused Head reverse paddles for two.
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5th over: Australia 24-0 (Khawaja 13, Head 11) Enough plodding, says Head. He pounces on a Mendis fuller ball and bludgeons it down the ground for FOUR. Now a strolled single. Khawaja gets a short one and feasts, sweeping sweetly behind square for FOUR. Now a full bunger from Mendis gets the treatment, flicked off the hip by Khawaja for a third boundary from the over. Australia racing along. They now need 51 for victory.
4th over: Australia 11-0 (Khawaja 5, Head 6) Head rocks back again and cuts hard for a single. Khawaja spurns the axeman’s jazz and opts for finesse, sweeping fine for a couple. Lovely shot. Three from the over and Australia’s target is now 64 runs to win.
3rd over: Australia 8-0 (Khawaja 3, Head 5) Mendis returns for another over but surely Prabath Jayasuriya, with five wickets in the first innings, can’t be far off. Mendis isn’t bowling badly. To prove it he jags one from a middle stump line and gets it to explode and to narrowly miss the shoulder of Khawaja’s bat. Next ball is even better. Khawaja stepped out and swished and it beat the bat by a coat of varnish. A menacing maiden.
2nd over: Australia 8-0 (Khawaja 3, Head 5) Nishan Peiris has been thrown the new ball from the other end. Khawaja steps down and wafts a single through mid-off. Now Peiris flashes one past Head’s edge. It landed on leg and finished on off. Nice! The next is straighter and almost blows Head’s stumps to pieces. Major movement out of the rough for Peiris. But Head isn’t a man to dwell on near-misses. he steps back and wallops the fifth ball to the boundary.
1st over: Australia 3-0 (Khawaja 2, Head 1) Mendis lands his first ball on a length and Khawaja defends. Usman se skips out to the second and flicks a single. What will Head deliver first ball? A flat bat drive to a full delivery. That’s an anticlimax. Now Mendis throws down a floater that dips late. Good ball. Finally Head gets space to step back and get off the mark. Khawaja follows his lead for a third run from the over.
Here come the players. Australia need 75 runs. Sri Lanka need 10 wickets. Looks like it’s Usman Khawaja’s turn to face the first ball. It will be spinner Ramesh Mendis to take the new ball. Fast wickets opr fast runs? We’re about to find out…
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Sri Lanka all out 231. Australia will chase 75 runs for victory
Well that was a quick kill by the Australians!
Lyon got one of the wickets required and Webster the second but it’s Matthew Kuhnemann who will finish the series as leading wicket-taker. Not a bad effort for a bloke who had a broken thumb six weeks ago.
Along the way Steve Smith brought up 200 Test catches. That now puts him four catches clear of Ricky Ponting (196) from 52 fewer matches. Extraordinary.
We now have the mouth-watering prospect of Travis Head coming out to chase down 75 runs with almost two full days to get ‘em. Will he even need an hour?
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WICKET! Kumara b Webster 9 (Sri Lanka 231 - 10)
Webster enters the attack and gets Kumara’s wicket first ball! That’s good bowling by Webster, bad batting by Kumara and smart captaincy by Steve Smith. The big allrounder rumbled in and put it on off stump. Kumara, newly promoted from No 11, tried to slog sweep over deep midwicket, misses and it crashes into the timber. That crazy heave neatly sums up the impetuosity of the home side’s batting. Sri Lanka are all out 231 and Australia will chase 75 runs for victory in the second Test.
Beau Webster's first Test wicket: Bowling pace
— 7Cricket (@7Cricket) February 9, 2025
Beau Webster's second Test wicket: Bowling off spin
Versatility level 📈 pic.twitter.com/1u8Z0k1rAy
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68th over: Sri Lanka 229-9 (Kumara 6, Peiris 1) Australia need one wicket. Will it be Lyon or Kuhnemann who collects it and bags a five-for? “Nice patience here,” urges Alex Carey behind the stumps. Lyon fizzes one past the edge at 86kph. Sri Lanka get a risky single. But very next ball Kumara edged to Beau Webster at second slip! Easy catch and Webster nonchalently claims it. But Kumara stands his ground. The umpires will review this. Smith had a good view at first slip and he is walking off the ground certain it’s a clean catch. But we are now watching replays that show a little bounce into the hands. Not out!
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67th over: Sri Lanka 229-9 (Kumara 6, Peiris 1) Kuhnemann is hunting a fifth wicket. He’s a good chance too, given Peiris is on strike and has been bowled twice by the Queenslander in identical fashion. Can the Big Kuhena make it three on the trot? No, Nishan nudges a single. Kumara flays another run to mid-on for another single. Peiris, cocky after getting off his duck, square cuts for another. Sri Lanka now lead by 72.
66th over: Sri Lanka 225-9 (Kumara 6, Peiris 1) Huge appeal by Lyon against Nishan Peiris who has missed straight ones all series. Umpire says no – is there an inside edge? But Australia ask for a second opinion. They have two reviews left so why not? Replays show it clipping leg stump so we’ll stay with the umpire’s decision. Review retained and Peiris survives! Another shout from the slips cordon on the last. Umpire says Nup. Lyon shrugs too. But Smith, ever-hungry to move the game on, overrules his veteran spinner and goes upstairs… it’s missing. Not out!
65th over: Sri Lanka 225-9 (Kumara 6, Peiris 0) Matt Kuhnemann, with four wickets of his own, enters his 22nd over. It’s another beauty but Kumara breaks the shackles with a hammered four through mid-off. Good shot by the new No 9.
64th over: Sri Lanka 218-9 (Kumara 0, Peiris 0) Mendis becomes Lyon’s fourth wicket of the innings. And that is a terrible blow for Sri Lanka who have now lost their last established batter. Pressure was on after Angelo Mathews threw away his wicket late yesterday and it has played a role in Mendis playing so weird a shot to be dismissed.
🚨 HISTORY BY STEVEN SMITH. 🚨
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) February 9, 2025
- Smith becomes the first ever Australian fielder to complete 200 catches in Tests. 🙇♂️pic.twitter.com/3T2v9jgcid
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WICKET! Mendis c Smith b Lyon 50 (Sri Lanka 217-9)
Mendis falls! He’d just brought up the 21st century of his career and the second of this Test and then Lyon whipped in a faster ball with more fizz and bounce and Mendis was caught on the hop. He withdrew his hands and tried to pull it into the turf but it caught the top edge and floated up to Steve Smith at slip who bagged the easiest of catches.
200 Test catches for Smith!
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63rd over: Sri Lanka 215-8 (Mendis 48, Kumara 0) Kuhnemann has five deliveries left in his over and they’ll be to Lahiru Kumara. The first innings No 11 has earned a promotion to No 9 after hanging tough for 26 balls and 48 minutes with Kusal Mendis in the first innings. His defensive stroke to the last ball deceives everyone and runs for four byes.
In the Sheffield Shield game at the Gabba, New South Wales are fighting back from a disastrous 39-5 – including the prize scalp of Sam Konstas for 3 from 33 balls – to trail Queensland 292 runs with five wickets remaining.
Players are taking the field in Galle. Let’s get ready to rumble!
Nathan Lyon casually strolled past 550 Test wickets yesterday – just the seventh man in history to achieve the feat.
Ever humble, the old man from the town of Young (where the prize export is sweet cherries), was quick to shift the praise to spin partner Matthew Kuhnemann and also pay tribute to two legends who sat on his shoulders and whispered in his ears as he made history.
Will Lyon deliver two sweet cherries this morning to wrap up the Sri Lankan innings?
Nathan Lyon reveals the advice from two Aussie legends that he has taken with him from his first Test wicket to the 550th #SLvAUS pic.twitter.com/DhPKgM020i
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) February 8, 2025
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Before the Ashes kick off in Perth on November 21, Australia’s men will embark on a winter tour of the West Indies. If the prospect of a Melbourne winter doesn’t thrill the chill out of your bones, dates for the tour have just been announced.
Winter in the Windies? Don’t mind if we do! 🌴
— Cricket Australia (@CricketAus) February 5, 2025
The schedule for our Australian Men's Cricket Team's tour of the West Indies this June/July is here 🚨 pic.twitter.com/SXqimXkYO7
If the prospect of a series whitewash against Sri Lanka wasn’t delicious enough for Australian cricket fans, here’s Barney Ronay on the latest round of infighting within English cricket…
Bazball is not a cult. Maybe it’s actually a death cult. Because England are, on the numbers, suddenly terrible at cricket. And terrible in a way that feels uniform and on-message
What sweet music to Australian ears that is. Bring on the Ashes!
For those who came in late… here’s a wrap of day three.
Preamble
Greeting cricket fans! Welcome to day four of the second Test between Australia and Sri Lanka at Galle International Cricket Stadium.
Australia are 1-0 up in the series and could be 2-0 in a matter of hours if they continue to monster the Sri Lankans this morning. The home side will resume at 211 for 8, a slim lead of 54 runs on Australia’s mammoth first innings of 414, but with just two wickets in hand.
Sri Lanka’s hopes sit heavy on the shoulders of first-innings hero Kusal Mendis (48 not out) after they again lost a clump of key of middle-order wickets yesterday, including the prized scalp of veteran Angelo Mathews for 76. Lyon was the assassin there, ending a partnership of 70 to gave Australia the edge on a day in which 15 wickets fell.
Australia built their 414 on the back of the 259-run stand from Steve Smith (131) and Alex Carey (156) – a 157-run advantage on the first innings. Carey’s swashbuckling 150 runs from 175 balls swept him past Adam Gilchrist’s two scores of 144 to set a new highest score for Australian wicketkeepers in Asia.
That 157-run lead might’ve been more but for some fine bowling by Prabath Jayasuriya. He punched through Australia’s middle order in style, grabbing 5-151 and sparking a late-order collapse that claimed first-Test centurion Josh Inglis (0), new boy Cooper Connolly (four), Beau Webster (31) and Mitchell Starc (8).
However, Sri Lanka couldn’t cash in with the bat. And if Nathan Lyon (3-80) and Matthew Kuhnemann (4-52) pick up where they left off yesterday and Travis Head swats another a quick-fire half-century from the top, Australia can bank their first series whitewash on the subcontinent in nearly 20 years.
Can Mendis conjure another rearguard action to scramble Sri Lanka into a three-figure total and give Jayasuriya something to bowl at on a fizzing Galle wicket? Or will the Australians blitz the tail and unleash ‘The Hammer’ Head to blaze a trail to victory?
Play starts at 3.30pm so join us soon to find out.
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