GALLE: Australian outsider Nathan Lyon enjoyed a magnificent outing as he bagged an inexpensive five fer before left-handed starter Usman Khawaja gave the touring team a solid foundation on the opening day of the first Test against Sri Lanka .
After opting to bat first, the home team were only able to score 212 despite a brilliant fifty from goalkeeper batsman Niroshan Dickwella as the Australian spinning attack undid their efforts to give their side an advantage.
The hosts continued to lose wickets at regular intervals and none of their batsmen apart from Angello Mathews and Dickwella could hold out for long and came up short against the strong Australian bowling attack.
Dickwella was the top scorer for his team with a quick 58-for-59 ball, intertwined with six bounds, but he couldn’t get his team out of harm’s way either as Lyon scored the fourth to end his surprising strike. Matthews, on the other hand, was the notable run chaser as he shot 39 of 71.
For Australia, Lyon bagged five while Mitchell Swepson claimed three. Pacemakers Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc each made a scalp.
In response to Sri Lanka’s 212, Australian starters David Warner and Usman Khawaja provided a solid foundation for the team by making a decent 47 runs for first wicket.
However, Warner, who was scoring at a brisk pace, fell in the 10th when Ramesh Mendis caught the southpaw in his legs for 25. He faced 24 deliveries and broke five boundaries.
The touring team then suffered a brief collapse as they went from 47-0 to 83-3 in exactly 10 overs. Khawaja, on the other hand, stood his ground and kept the scoreboard going until the end of day one, while Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith perished financially in the midst of the collapse.
Khawaja, who is three shy of his half-century, will now resume proceedings for Australia at 98/3 alongside his counterpart Travis Head (6) on the second day of the ongoing test.
Mendis with his two wickets remained the only Sri Lankan bowler to open his account on the first day.
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