Friday 19 / April / 2024
Galle : Sri Lankan spinner Prabath Jayasuriya now has the best bowling figures on Test debut for his side.
He achieved this landmark during the second and final Test against Australia at Galle on Monday. Jayasuriya took 6/118 in the first innings and followed it with 6/59 in the second innings, completing 12 wickets in the match and conceding 177 runs.
These are also the fourth-best bowling figures on Test debut.
Coming to the match, Sri Lanka won the second Test by an innings and 39 runs thanks to the heroics of Chandimal with the bat and Prabath Jayasuriya with the ball.
Day 4 started with Sri Lanka at 431/6, with Dinesh Chandimal (118*) and Ramesh Mendis (7*). Chandimal continued his amazing batting display, bringing up his maiden double hundred. With support from Ramesh Mendis (29) and Maheesh Theekshana (10), he took Sri Lanka to 554/10, giving his side a 190-run lead to his side.
Pacer Mitchell Starc (4/89) and spinner Mitchell Swepson (3/103) were the standout bowlers for the Aussies. Spinner Nathan Lyon got two, while skipper Pat Cummins got one wicket.
Aussies took to the field with an aim to cut this deficit and gain a healthy lead. But Prabath Jayasuriya made sure that Aussies were thrown out of the game completely with his destructive spell. He captured some key wickets of Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne.
Marnus Labuschagne (32), Usman Khawaja (29), David Warner (24) and Cameron Green (23) were the only ones who could cross the 20-run mark for Aussies. Aussies were bundled out for 151 runs on Day four, losing the game by an innings and 39 runs.
Spinner Prabhath Jayasuriya took 6/59 in the final innings, picking a grand total of 12 wickets in the match. Theekshana and Ramesh Mendis took two scalps each.
Earlier, Australia, electing to bat first had put 364 runs on the board. Steve Smith (145*) and Marnus Labuschagne (104) were the heroes of Australia with the bat. Smith notably brought up his first century in around 1.5 years.
Prabhath Jayasuriya was the leading bowler in the first innings, taking 6/118. Kasun Rajitha took two wickets while Theekshana and Ramesh Mendis got a wicket each.
Brief Scores: Sri Lanka- 554 (Dinesh Chandimal 206, Dimuth Karunaratne 86, Mitchell Starc 4/89) defeated Australia 364 and 151 (Marnus Labuschagne 32, Usman Khawaja 29, Prabhath Jayasuriya 6/59) by an innings and 39 runs.
