SL vs AUS | Khawaja doubles down and Inglis tons up on debut to leave Sri Lanka on the brink on Day 2

Gantavya Adukia

ByGantavya Adukia,SportsCafe Editor

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Australia made huge strides towards victory on Thursday in the first Test as the side headed to Stumps with a lead of 610 and needing 17 more wickets for victory. The visitors posted 654/6d courtesy of a double from Usman Khawaja and Josh Inglis' ton before the Sri Lankan top-order crumbled.

Brief score: SL 44/3 [Kamindu 13*, Chandimal 9*; Lyon 1/7] trail AUS 654/6d [Khawaja 232, Smith 141; Vandersay 3/182] by 610 runs

Usman Khawaja and Steve Smith began Day 2 exactly where they had left off the previous evening as the pair used the depth of the crease and footwork to brilliant effect to navigate the Lankan spinners on the slow Galle deck. The duo added 71 more runs to their overnight partnership of 195, even when the likes of Jeff Vandersay continued to extract prodigous spin, but it was eventually a lack of turn that brought the hosts the breakthrough as a legbreak went past Smith's inside edge to tHowever, the wicket only brought more rap him plumb for 141. However, the wicket only brought more misery for the islanders as Josh Inglis came out with his typical aggressive intent and started taking the spinners to the cleaners. By Lunch, the debutant had already raced to 44 at nearly run-a-ball while Khawaja brought up a maiden Test double with the partnership reading 74 in a score of 475/3.

The duo doubled their partnership without much ado but with weather forecast a concern, the need became apparent to switch gears. Inglis showed no inhibiton in smacking Vandersay for a four and a six but Khawaja could not replicate the effort and nicked behind off Jayasuriya after a marathon 232. Inglis, nontheless, remained unperturbed as he brought up a maiden Test ton off just 90 delvieries albeit he did fall shortly after to Jayasuriya as well in trying to take him on. Lanka finally sensed some momentum, even though the score read a gloomy 570/5, but Alex Carey and Beau Webster ensured no lower order collapse ensued as they ticked off 30 runs until Tea and added another 29 in the final session as all eyes looked to Steve Smith expecting a declaration. None arrived for another five overs until the skipper decided 654/6 on the board was enough.

Australia had an hour and half left in the day to have a crack but only had to wait two overs for an opening success when Oshada Fernando, filling in for the injured Pathum Nissanka, failed to pick the pace of Matthew Kuhnemann's stock spinner and was given out LBW. Dimuth Karunaratne followed suit shortly after courtesy of a lethal Mitchell Starc bumper and Angelo Mathews became the third victim of the innings when his luck ran out to a flying Travis Head at short leg, soon after he had survived a ball thumping into his stumps without dislodging the bails. It took the heavens opening up with 13 minutes of play still left to ultimately give Sri Lanka respite as Dinesh Chandimal and Kamindu Mendis walked off, well aware they are massively behind in the game.    

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