The 2nd Test match of the Warne-Muralidaran Trophy was no short of a roller coaster ride for the fans. The experienced duo of Mitchell Starc & Nathan Lyon made a statement that they are still one of the best cricketers & produced spectacular spells & demolished the hosts.
Sri Lanka wasn’t clinical as expected given their innings defeat against Australia in the opening Test match. Head coach Sanath Jayasuriya was quite vocal regarding the shot selection of senior players and asked for a better performance and didn’t blame the pitch for their defeat.
Pitch Report & Playing XI:
“The conditions are perfect and we’re playing on pitch number 5 today. It looks very dry and with very little grass. There are already some cracks, the groundsmen have had plenty of time to prepare this pitch. The ball will spin right from the first hour, win the toss, put the runs on the board and you’re in the game, reckons,” Farveez Maharoof, in his pitch report.
Australia (Playing XI): Usman Khawaja, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith(c), Josh Inglis, Alex Carey(w), Beau Webster, Cooper Connolly, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Kuhnemann, Nathan Lyon
Dimuth Karunaratne & Dinesh Chandimal Play Out A Dodgy Morning Session
Nathan Lyon & Mitchell Starc wrecked Sri Lanka’s batting in afternoon session
Mitchell Starc & Matthew Kuhnemann fight after Ramesh Mendis resistance in the evening session
Matthew Kuhnemann was seen bowling to a particular gameplan and used the variations smartly which confused the batter. Dinesh Chandimal was solid in his defense and was taking the calculative risk. Kuhnemann was bowling the 61st over, on the second delivery; Chandimal tried to defend the ball and missed the ball which bounced a bit more and Alex Carey stumped the batter which was a very brilliant glove work and Chandimal was out on 74 runs in 163 balls. Sri Lanka was in deep trouble at 150-6 in 60.2 overs.
Ramesh Mendis along with Kusal Mendis stitched an invaluable partnership of 65 runs and took the score beyond 200 runs. The second new ball was taken in 82nd over, Mitchell Starc in the 84th over not only broke the partnership of Ramesh Mendis & Kusal Mendis but also took another wicket of Prabath Jayasuriya. Mitchell Starc’s express pace changed the course of the game as at the end of Day 1, Sri Lanka managed to score 229-9 with Kusal Mendis not out on 59 runs.
What lies ahead on Day 2 for Sri Lanka & Australia
It was quite a topsy-turvy day for Sri Lanka. The hosts would be disappointed the way Angelo Mathews & Kamindu Mendis fared, given at one point, the island nation was cruising for a score beyond 300 runs. The surface can turn out to be a minefield as the Test match progresses as one good session with the bowl for Sri Lanka can put Aussies on backfoot.
It has been a collective effort from Australia; Starc & Lyon took 3 wickets each and were bang on target with their line & lengths. The last wicket partnership so far has been a mere 5 runs but on Day 2, Kusal Mendis will go berserk and try to get score close to 250. Steven Smith will be very well aware of the fact that 1st innings lead of over 100 runs will put them in ascendancy in Test match. Steven Smith now has surpassed Ricky Ponting with the most catches in Test cricket with 197 to his name as compared to Ponting’s 196 which is a remarkable feat.