Australia’s stand-in captain Steven Smith scored his 10,000th Test run after Travis Head justified his promotion up the batting-order with a rapid half-century on a slow Galle surface against a spin-heavy Sri Lanka attack in the opening session of the series.

Smith scored the solitary run needed off his first delivery just before lunch to join Ricky Ponting, Allan Border and Steve Waugh as the only Australians to achieve the milestone.

Australia were rewarded for an aggressive approach, but Sri Lanka mounted a late session fightback with the dismissals of Head for 57 and Marnus Labuschagne. Legspinner Jeffrey Vandersay, a surprise inclusion for Sri Lanka, spun the ball sharply and was rewarded with the wicket of Labuschagne for 20.

Sri Lanka, however, rued missed opportunities to dismiss Usman Khawaja and Smith just before the interval.

Not having to face tormentor Jasprit Bumrah, Khawaja has cut a relaxed figure and played with good intent to reach lunch on 65 not out.

Head and Khawaja made the most of favourable batting conditions with a 92-run opening partnership.

In a somewhat contentious move, Head moved up from No. 5 at the expense of 19 year old Sam Konstas,  who had made an eye-catching start to his Test career against India. The decision also allowed Josh Inglis, the Western Australia wicketkeeper and a noted player of spin, to make his Test debut at five as a specialist batter.

Having previously struggled s a a middle-order batter in Sri Lanka, Head had success as an opener in India on the 2023 tour and he replicated that in his 40-ball whirlwind. Head’s swift strike rate suggests belligerent batting straight out of the recently concluded Big Bash League, but he played smartly and mostly in orthodox fashion.

With swift foot work skipping down the pitch, Head successfully targeted Sri Lankan spinners Nishan Peiris and Prabath Jayasuriya and did not let them settle on a surface which initially had little turn.

Smith had no hesitation to bat when the coin fell in his favour amid stifling humidity and a grassless surface. Head pounced on wayward bowling from Asitha Fernando, Sri Lanka’s sole frontline quick, with three boundaries in the opening over.

Head raced to 23 off 13 and showed no mercy, but he did receive some luck on the last ball of Fernando’s opening three-over spell when he was rapped on the pads. Fernando had appealed vigorously, but Sri Lanka opted against reviewing although replays suggested the not out decision would have been overturned.

Head made them pay as he reverted to his baggy green cap with the introduction of Jayasuriya, who destroyed Australia at the venue with a 12-wicket haul in his Test debut in 2022.

Head slog swept Peiris over deep midwicket before being hit on the pad as a frustrated Sri Lanka captain Dhananjaya de Silva reviewed but predictably to no avail.

Head reached his half-century off 35 balls, but fell shortly after when he tried to hit Jayasuriya over long-on but mis-hit to Dinesh Chandimal on the rope. Khawaja had been mostly overshadowed, but had also shown a willingness to skip down the track like when he clubbed Peiris down the ground for six

Khawaja also unfurled the reverse sweep to good effect to fluster Jayasuriya and hit him for a boundary through the vacant offside. Khawaja reached his half-century off 71 balls, but the game turned – literally – with Vandersay producing sharp legspin from the get go.

He produced a Shane Warne-esque legbreak to beat Labuschagne all ends up on his first delivery, while Peiris had a huge lbw shout on the batter turned down with DRS upholding the decision.

But Labuschagne poked Vandersay to first slip as Sri Lanka ended the session in better spirits.

Australia selected a spin-heavy attack with offspinner Todd Murphy and left-armer Matthew Kuhnemann to complement frontliner Nathan Lyon.

Mitchell Starc was the sole paceman named with allrounder Beau Webster capable of bowling seam and seam. Scott Boland unluckily was dropped after taking 10 wickets against India in the fifth Test at the SCG.

Brief scores: ]Day 1 Lunch]
Australia 145 for 2 in 32 overs (Usman Khawaja 65*, Travis Head 57, Marnus Labuschagne 20;  Jeffrey Vandersay 1-19, Prabath Jayasuriya 1-44) vs Sri Lanka

[Cricinfo]