Australia spinner Nathan Lyon on Saturday achieved a rare Test cricket feat. In the 1st Test against Sri Lanka in Galle, Lyon dismissed Dinesh Chandimal twice in the same session on Day 4. At 10:13 AM local time, Lyon trapped Chandimal LBW, and after Australia enforced the follow-on, he got the better of him again at 12:03 PM. Responding to Australia’s 654/6 declared, Sri Lanka were bowled out for 165 with Chandimal (72) top-scoring for the hosts. Australia eventually won the game by an innings and 242 runs.

Lyon is only the sixth bowler to dismiss a batter twice in the same session. Before him, Alec Bedser (Wazir Mohammad, 1954), Keith Boyce (Alan Knott, 1973), Irfan Pathan (Mohammad Rafique, 2006), Graeme Swann (Salman Butt, 2010) and Prabath Jayasuriya (Lorcan Tucker, 2023) had achieved the feat as well.

Lyon also became the highest overseas wicket-taker on Sri Lankan soil, surpassing India’s Ravichandran Ashwin, who took 38 wickets in the Island nation.

Top 5 highest wicket-takers in Sri Lanka (overseas)

Nathan Lyon (Australia) – 42*

Ravichandran Ashwin (India) – 38

Saeed Ajmal (Pakistan) – 38

Shane Warne (Australia) – 37

Yasir Shah (Pakistan) – 33

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka suffered its heaviest ever defeat in Tests while losing the first Galle Test. Following on Day 4, Sri Lanka were bowled out for 247. On the other hand, for Australia, it was their fourth biggest Test win.

Sri Lanka’s heaviest defeat prior to this loss came in Nagpur in 2017, when they were hammered by an innings and 239 runs by India. Australia declared on 654-6 late on the second day after opener Usman Khawaja’s career-best 232.

Australia now lead 1-0 in the two-match series. Galle will also host the second and final match of the series next week before a two-match ODI series in Colombo.

(With AFP Inputs)

SL v AUS, 1st Test Day 4 LIVE Score Updates© AFP

Australia had Sri Lanka three down after opener Usman Khawaja‘s first double century and a ton on debut by Josh Inglis helped the tourists to 654-6 declared in the first match on Thursday. Sri Lanka were 44-3 by stumps on day two at Galle with senior batsmen Dinesh Chandimal, on nine, and Kamindu Mendis, on 13, on guard until rain stopped play. Left-arm spinner Matthew Kuhnemann struck first to have Oshada Fernando lbw and soon pace spearhead Mitchell Starc got Dimuth Karunaratne caught at gully. Both batsmen made seven.

Veteran spinner Nathan Lyon then sent back former skipper Angelo Mathews out for eight with Travis Head taking a diving catch at short leg.

Khawaja’s 266-run third-wicket partnership with Steve Smith, who hit 141 in a landmark innings that got the stand-in skipper to 10,000 Test runs, stood out after Australia elected to bat first at the start of the two-match series.

It was the first time the tourists had breached the 600-run mark in Sri Lanka, surpassing their previous Asian high of 617, posted in Pakistan in 1980.

Wicketkeeper-batsman Alex Carey was unbeaten on 46 with Mitchell Starc on 19 when Smith declared the first innings in the final session.

Inglis made it count when he walked in after Smith departed on 141 in a landmark innings that got the stand-in skipper to 10,000 Test runs.

He made 102 and with Khawaja kept up the batting surge in a 146-run stand to tire out the opposition attack.

Spinner Prabath Jayasuriya broke the partnership to get Khawaja caught behind as the opener walked back after 352 balls that included 16 fours and one six.

Inglis reached his ton off 90 balls as he jumped in delight and punched the air.

But he got out in the next over as he gave away a catch to short cover off Jayasuriya.

Jayasuriya and fellow spinner Jeffrey Vandersay took three wickets each as Sri Lanka toiled for 154 overs.

The tourists resumed on 330-2 as overnight batsmen Khawaja and Smith frustrated the opposition attack on a sunny morning.

Khawaja took a single off Jayasuriya to reach 200 as he removed his helmet, raised his bat and dropped down to kiss the turf while teammates and fans stood up to applaud.

His previous best was an unbeaten 195 against South Africa in 2023 at Sydney and he is now the first Australian batsman to make a double ton in Sri Lanka.

After reaching the historic 10,000-run milestone with a single, Steve Smith went on to score his 35th Test century and helped Australia reach 330 for 2 on Day 1 of the first Test against Sri Lanka at Galle, Sri Lanka on Wednesday. Smith was batting on 104 at stumps with Usman Khawaja unbeaten on 147, having anchored the Australian innings, raising 195 runs for the third wicket partnership. Coming in to bat at No.4, Smith displayed his trademark precision and composure, forging a strong partnership with Usman Khawaja. His hundred, achieved off 179 balls (10 fours and 1 six) in his 205th innings, places him third on the list of fastest to 35 Test centuries, trailing only Ricky Ponting (195) and Sachin Tendulkar (200) in terms of innings taken to reach the milestone.

Smith is now only the seventh batter to record 35 Test centuries, joining an elite list that includes Tendulkar (51), Jacques Kallis (45), Ponting (41), Kumar Sangakkara (38), Rahul Dravid (36), and Joe Root (36).

Smith surpassed the likes of Sunil Gavaskar, Brian Lara, Mahela Jayawardene and Younis Khan in the list of batters with most Test hundreds. All the four ex-cricketers slammed 34 tons each in the format.

His achievement is further amplified by his captaincy record, as this was his 16th Test hundred as Australia captain, surpassing Allan Border and Steve Waugh, both of whom had 15. Among Australian captains, only Ponting (19) has scored more centuries, while globally, Smith ranks fourth behind Graeme Smith (25), Virat Kohli (20), and Ponting.

Smith’s dominance with the bat extends to his numbers as a leader, as he closed in on 4,000 Test runs as captain, boasting an average of over 68 – second only to Don Bradman’s extraordinary 101 among skippers with at least 3,000 Test runs.

Earlier in the day, Smith became just the 15th batter to surpass 10,000 Test runs, joining an exclusive club of Australian greats that includes Allan Border, Steve Waugh, and Ricky Ponting. He also became the fifth-fastest to the milestone, trailing only Tendulkar, Brian Lara, Sangakkara, and Ponting, all of whom reached the mark in 195 or 196 innings.

Sri Lanka vs Australia Live Scorecard 1st Test Day 1© PTI