Sports
Khawaja, Smith put Australia in the driver’s seat with masterclass
Rex Clementine in Galle
Hundreds from Usman Khawaja (147) and Steve Smith (104) propelled Australia into the box seat on the opening day of the first Test against Sri Lanka, as they reached 330 for two before rain played spoilsport, bringing an early halt to proceedings in Galle yesterday.
The duo stitched together an unbroken 195-run stand for the third wicket, coming tantalizingly close to breaking the record of 200 runs between Damien Martyn and Adam Gilchrist, set in Kandy back in 2004.
The day, however, belonged to Steve Smith, who etched his name in cricket’s hall of fame by becoming just the 15th batter in Test history to breach the 10,000-run mark. He joined an elite club of Australian greats – Allan Border, Steve Waugh, and Ricky Ponting – who had previously crossed the milestone.
Arriving in Galle on 9,999 Test runs, Smith wasted no time in getting the monkey off his back, nudging his very first ball from Prabath Jayasuriya to mid-on and scampering through for a single. It could have been an early walk back to the pavilion, though, as Jayasuriya grassed a sharp return catch in the same over – a chance Sri Lanka would come to rue. Smith made the hosts pay dearly, crafting a sublime 35th Test century, his third in four matches, reaffirming his stature as Australia’s rock in the middle order.
Khawaja, too, had a few lives, with a couple of edges falling just short of the close-in fielders. He survived a major let-off on 74, when Sri Lanka chose not to review a caught behind shout. On 90, another opportunity slipped through Sri Lanka’s fingers as Kusal Mendis, slow to react behind the stumps, spilled a bat-pad chance.
For the stylish left-hander, the hundred was long overdue—his first since the Ashes in June 2023. The 17-Test drought ended in style when he flicked Asitha Fernando to the fine leg boundary, a stroke brimming with elegance and relief.
Despite overcast conditions, Sri Lanka’s lone seamer Asitha Fernando struggled to extract movement, while the spinners failed to keep the batters in check with their inconsistent lines. Fernando did have Travis Head trapped leg before wicket early on, but Sri Lanka, once again, failed to review after the on-field umpire ruled in the batter’s favor.
Head, promoted to open, threw caution to the wind, blazing his way to 57 off just 40 balls. His aggressive stroke play forced Sri Lanka onto the back foot, though his counterattack ended when he holed out to long-on while trying to take on Jayasuriya.
Still, the damage had been done – Head’s early fireworks scattered the field, allowing Khawaja to settle in and play the anchor role. His unbeaten 147, coupled with Smith’s 104 not out, has laid the foundation for a massive first-innings total.
With three specialist spinners in their ranks, Australia hold all the aces, especially with the pitch expected to deteriorate as the game progresses. Sri Lanka, meanwhile, will need something extraordinary to claw their way back into the contest.
West Indies have named an unchanged squad for the upcoming home T20I series against Australia following the 2-0 loss to Sri Lanka.
The squad, led by Hayley Matthews, will take on the No. 1-ranked Australia side at the Arnos Vale Cricket Ground in Kingstown for all three games. The squad is a mix of experienced players such as Matthews, Stafanie Taylor, Shemaine Campbelle and Deandra Dottin with teenage prospects Eboni Brathwaite and Jahzara Claxton. The series forms a key part of the teams’ preparation for the T20 World Cup in June this year in the UK.
“We’re really excited about the opportunity to play the number one ranked ODI and T20 team in the world,” head coach Shane Deitz said. “It’s just before the World Cup, so it’s a great opportunity to see where we are in our preparation. Playing against the best team in the world, we can see where our deficiencies are and where things are working well as we look forward to the tournament in June in England.
“It’s going to be a very tough series, but the players are up for the challenge. We haven’t played them in a competitive match since October 2023, so it’ll be good to see the progression of the team since that last meeting, namely in how much we’ve improved in certain areas and where we still need to improve moving forward. Our players are ready to show their skills and demonstrate the talent in this West Indies group. It’s going to be a fantastic tour and entertaining for everyone.”
The first T20I is scheduled for March 19 followed by the next two on March 21 and 23. The teams will also play a three-match ODI series following the T20Is at Warner Park in St. Kitts and Nevis. The tour was also supposed to include a Test match but it was dropped with the hosts wanting to prioritize white-ball cricket ahead of the T20 World Cup.
West Indies women T20I squad:
Hayley Matthews (captain), Chinelle Henry, Aaliyah Alleyne, Eboni Brathwaite, Shemaine Campbelle, Jahzara Claxton, Deandra Dottin, Afy Fletcher, Jannillea Glasgow, Shawnisha, Hector, Zaida James, Qiana Joseph, Mandy Mangru, Karishma Ramharack, Stafanie Taylor
World and Olympic champion Mondo Duplantis added another centimetre to his own world pole vault record*, clearing 6.31m at the Mondo Classic – a World Athletics Indoor Tour Silver meeting – in Uppsala on Thursday (12).
The pole vault superstar had no failures on his way to his record-breaking performance, opening with 5.65m before scaling 5.90m and 6.08m at the first time of asking.
Norway’s Sondre Guttormsen finished second with 6.00m, his second six-metre vault of the season.
Zachery Bradford, Sam Kendricks and Kurtis Marschall all cleared 590m to place third, fourth and fifth respectively.
[World Athletics]
S. Thomas’ College adopted an ultra-cautious approach to reach 203 for four wickets at stumps on the opening day of the historic Battle of the Blues against arch rivals Royal College at the SSC Ground on Thursday.
After being put in to bat, the Thomian top order proceeded at a snail’s pace as they consumed a large number of overs to build their innings.
Openers Jaden Amaraweera and Avinash Fernando laid the foundation with a patient first wicket stand of 110 runs, occupying as many as 40 overs on either side of the lunch interval. The pair could have been separated earlier when Royal’s Vimath Dinsara dropped Avinash when the score was 85. Avinash, who was then on 39, was given a reprieve off the bowling of Gagan Gamage.
Making full use of the chance, Avinash went on to complete a half century. He faced 145 balls for his 50 which included five boundaries before being caught by Yasindu Dissanayake off the bowling of Gamage.
Amaraweera was the first to depart after compiling a patient 52 off 109 deliveries with seven fours. He was caught by Mahiru Kodituwakku off the bowling of spinner Himaru Deshan.
Following the two wickets that fell within the space of two overs, Methuka Gunarathna and Aaron Kodituwakku attempted to steady the innings with another long vigil at the crease. The pair batted for 28 overs but managed to
add only 37 runs.
Aaron endured a long stay for his 12 runs, facing 89 balls before falling to the spin of Ramiru Perera. Methuka contributed 44 runs off 116 balls with six boundaries before being dismissed later in the day.
At the close of play, Reshon Solomon remained unbeaten on 19 after facing 70 balls, while Raphael Hettige was not out on 12 as the Thomians ended a slow but steady first day on 203 for four. (RF)
This is not an ordinary scholarship programme. It defines the future vision of our country – PM
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