The two-match Test series between Sri Lanka (SL) and Australia (AUS) will get underway with the first game beginning on Wednesday, January 29 at the Galle International Stadium. Notably, the last time these two sides faced off in the longest format was in 2022, with the series ending in a draw.
Ahead of the Champions Trophy, Sri Lanka (SL) is all set to steady their boats as they start off a fresh Test and ODI series against Australia (AUS). Australia’s tour starts with the Test series and the 1st Test is scheduled for January 29 at the Galle International Stadium in Galle.
SL vs AUS : Previous Performances
The Dhananjaya de Silva-led side would be eager to bounce back after a tough series loss to South Africa. The team will rely on its core to counter the Aussie challenge. Dhananjaya de Silva, Kamindu Mendis and Pathum Nissanka, who all have injury concerns, have been included in the squad. On the bowling front, the home side is banking on spinners like Prabath Jayasuriya and Nishan Peiris, with pitches expected to favor spin.
Interestingly, Australia have been in great form recently, with a historic 3-1 series win over India in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The side also clinched their spot for the finals of the World Test Championship. For this series, the Australian side will be without their regular skipper, Pat Cummins, due to the birth of his second child. Veteran batter Steve Smith has been appointed as the captain while Travis Head will serve as the vice-captain.
Furthermore, Smith mentioned that Head will be opening the innings alongside Usman Khawaja, while Sam Konstas, who had a brilliant debut series against India, will be preferred lower down the order due to his lack of experience playing in Asian conditions. Spinners Matt Kuhneman and Todd Murphy made a return for the visitors, though the team will be without Josh Hazlewood (due to calf injury) and Mitchell Marsh, with the duo focusing on the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy.
SL vs AUS : Head to Head
Matches | 33 |
Won by Australia | 20 |
Won by Sri Lanka | 05 |
Draw | 08 |
No Result | 00 |
First-ever Fixture | 22-26 Apr 1983 |
Most-recent Fixture | 8-11 July 2022 |
SL vs AUS : Pitch Report
The Galle International Stadium is expected to help the spinners, especially as the match progresses. The batters will find it more difficult as time goes on and they would have to make the most of the first innings. The average first innings score at the venue is 369. Out of the 46 Tests that the stadium has hosted, 25 have been won by teams batting first and 15 by the ones batting second.
The Galle International Stadium is renowned for its spin-friendly conditions. Over the years, the pitch has increasingly favored spinners as the match progresses, creating challenges for teams batting last.
While the early days of the game may provide less spin, the situation changes as the pitch wears down and cracks begin to appear, allowing spinners to dominate. Hence, the toss-winning captain might like to abuse the early favorable conditions and rack up some good scores by choosing to bat first. The Galle International Stadium is renowned for its spin-friendly conditions. Over the years, the pitch has increasingly favored spinners as the match progresses, creating challenges for teams batting last.
It’s an unusual time of the year to be playing a Test in Galle for Australia, where it’s still peak cricket season. It’s been a wet and muggy week leading into the opening Test, with heavy rains having lashed the southern coast right till the time the Aussies arrived in town over the weekend. The sun has barely made an appearance, and the city and the ground have been engulfed in thick cloud cover, leading to extreme humidity.
The pitch as always has been the centre of attention. It started with most of the grass being mowed down, in fact all of it, leaving it mostly barren two days out from the Test. Then on the eve the ground-staff had the UV light device in the centre for around half hour in addition to more mowing. It still doesn’t guarantee how the pitch will eventually play, but as always that’ll be a crucial theme in the tempo at which this Test is played at.
While the early days of the game may provide less spin, the situation changes as the pitch wears down and cracks begin to appear, allowing spinners to dominate. Hence, the toss-winning captain might like to abuse the early favorable conditions and rack up some good scores by choosing to bat first.
SL vs AUS : Big Picture : The Warne-Muralidaran trophy is back with Sri Lanka and Australia locking horns on spin friendly wicket
Australia’s Test series in Sri Lanka often seem to have a touch of the dramatic about them. Last time Australia were in Galle, Sri Lanka saw the greatest mass protests in the country’s history, while the teams battled out a 1-1 series. In 2016, Australia had nosedived spectacularly against spin, Rangana Herath gobbling up their top order en masse.
Over the years there have been series-ending fielding collisions, such as in 1999 in Kandy when Jason Gillespie broke a leg and Steve Waugh broke a nose, Shane Warne triggering one of Sri Lanka’s most painful 90s collapses to clinch victory in a game Australia were losing, and Sri Lanka producing one of their most infamously dry surfaces in Galle in 2011. Where Sri Lanka have never won a Test in Australia, these teams tend to be more evenly matched in Sri Lanka.
And so it shapes up again. Australia are coming off their big Border-Gavaskar Trophy win, of course. Through their 3-1 win in that series, they also booked their World Test Championship final spot. They are missing regular captain Pat Cummins, who is on paternity leave, but have a seasoned leader in Steven Smith.
Sri Lanka had had a decent Test year in 2024, until the disappointing series in South Africa to finish it off. But they will feel as if their Test team is building to something – maybe mounting a more serious campaign in the next WTC cycle, in which they appear to have a relatively easy schedule.
It will likely come down to spin in Galle. This surface doesn’t appear to be the driest one the ground has turned out, and may stay together a little longer than usual, owing to January’s cooler weather. But it is likely to take substantial turn from day three onwards. Expect plenty of sweeping and reverse-sweeping, and catchers around the bat as the match wears on.
SL vs AUS : Vital Stats that matters
- Steve Smith is one run away from completing 10,000 in Test cricket. He’d be the fourth Australia batter to the milestone, after Alan Border, Steve Waugh, and Ricky Ponting.
- Prabath Jayasuriya took 12 wickets for 177 in the one Test he’d played against Australia – on debut in Galle.
- All up, Australia have won three of the six Tests they’ve played in Galle, losing two and drawing one.
SL vs AUS : Team News : SL and AUS
Sri Lanka :
The hosts are set to meet with the Baggy Greens after 2022 where they ended the series in a draw. Sri Lanka enters the two-match Test series against Australia with a blend of experience and emerging talent, aiming to leverage home conditions against a formidable opponent.
Led by all-rounder Dhananjaya de Silva, Sri Lanka’s squad features seasoned campaigners like Dimuth Karunaratne, whose opening prowess will be critical, and Angelo Mathews adds stability to the middle order.
The hosts will rely heavily on left-arm spinner Prabath Jayasuriya, their primary wicket-taking threat on spin-friendly tracks, supported by pacers Lahiru Kumara and Vishwa Fernando. Sri Lanka’s challenge lies in balancing their spin-heavy strategy with consistent batting performances to counter Australia’s pace attack and tactical depth in what promises to be a gripping contest.
Sri Lanka announced an 18-man squad for a two-match home series, interestingly. But that number was reduced by one with regular opener Pathum Nissanka being ruled out due to injury, with Oshada Fernando the likely replacement at the top of the order. The make-up of Sri Lanka’s playing XI should be a slight indicator as to how the home team expect the pitch to play.
The batting line-up is filled with seasoned players who’ve all played quite a bit against this Australian team, with Kamindu Mendis the cynosure with his extraordinary numbers in Tests. Prabath Jayasuriya will be the key like he was on debut against the Aussies in 2022, and has been ever since for his team.
SL Probable Playing XI : Kusal Mendis (wk.), Dinesh Chandimal, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Dimuth Karunaratne, Angelo Mathews, Kamindu Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva (c), Milan Priyanath, Prabath Jayasuriya, Jeffrey Vandersay, Nishan Peiris
Australia :
Steve Smith wasted no time in confirming Travis Head as opener for the opening Test, which immediately throws some doubt over Sam Konstas retaining his place in the side. That could open the door for Josh Inglis to make a long-awaited Test debut in the middle order. His ability to attack spin in multiple ways with a variety of sweeps could well give him the edge to come into the side.
Australia are likely to leave the combination of their bowling attack till quite late, once they take a final look at the pitch on Wednesday morning. It’ll come down to either Todd Murphy coming in as the second off-spinner alongside Lyon and Matthew Kuhneman, who will play, or Scott Boland teaming up with Mitchell Starc for a two-man pace attack.
Australia have confirmed that Travis Head will open the innings, displacing Sam Konstas from that position. They are pondering their attack though, and could go in with as many as three spinners – Todd Murphy potentially joining Lyon and Matthew Kuhnemann. They will likely have Josh Inglis and Beau Webster – who bowls spin as well as seam – in the lower middle order.
Australia enters the two-Test series against Sri Lanka brimming with confidence after their triumphant Border-Gavaskar Trophy campaign against India. Led by Steve Smith, the squad combines seasoned stars and fresh faces, with Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne stabilizing the batting, while Travis Head’s aggressive middle-order approach remains pivotal.
The pacers Mitchell Starc, and Scott Boland will aim to exploit early movement, with Nathan Lyon, supported by Todd Murphy and Matthew Kuhneman overlooking the spin department. Moreover, with tactical adaptability and a proven core, Australia seeks to extend their dominance in the series.
Australia Confirmed Playing XI : Usman Khawaja, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith (c), Alex Carey (wk.), Sam Konstas, Beau Webster, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Kuhneman, Todd Murphy
SL vs AUS Fantasy XI : Kusal Mendis, Steve Smith, Pathum Nissanka, Marnus Labuschagne, Travis Head, Kamindu Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva, Nathan Lyon, Prabath Jayasuriya, Mitchell Starc, Lahiru Kumara
AUS vs SL : Players to watch out for SL and AUS
Sri Lanka :
Prabath Jayasuriya
Prabath Jayasuriya’s recent form makes him a key player for the upcoming contest. The left-arm spinner has been instrumental in red-ball cricket with his standout performances including a remarkable 6/42 against New Zealand and a five-wicket haul against South Africa. Jayasuriya’s ability to exploit turn and bounce will make him a vital asset for his side.
Nishan Peiris
Nishan Peiris, despite being relatively new to the international scene, has already displayed exceptional potential. In his debut Test series against New Zealand, Peiris grabbed a stunning 3/33 and followed it with a six-wicket haul, showcasing his ability to trouble batters with his off-spin.
Kamindu Mendis
Kamindu Mendis has proven his worth as a dependable middle-order batter, especially during Sri Lanka’s series against South Africa. With scores of 48 and 35 in critical situations, he demonstrated his ability to anchor the innings and accelerate when needed. He is a dependable all-rounder too who can dismantle wickets when needed.
Australia :
Nathan Lyon
Nathan Lyon is a spin veteran and his bowling will be a deciding factor for the Aussies on the spin-friendly Galle track. The veteran has managed 539 wickets in his 249 Test innings and can counter the Sri Lankans on their home soil with gritty bowling.
Travis Head
Travis Head was an absolute menace in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against India where he racked up 2 centuries and a half century across the five Tests. He will be key to accelerate Australia’s innings in the middle order and can prove to be dangerous if he finds his rhythm on the pitch.
Steve Smith
The captain, Steve Smith may play a captain’s knock at Galle as he is in a sensational recent form. With a ton in BBL 14 and with two tons in BGT as well, Smith can be a pivot for his team and stabilize the Baggy Green’s innings during the storm.
SL vs AUS : Match Prediction
The team choosing to bat first will likely have the upper hand in this match. On current form Australia look hot favorites but Sri Lanka on the other hand would look to threaten them in home conditions spicing up the exciting context.