Sri Lanka was unable to find a way to beat Steve Smith early on day two of the second Test – but managed to make quick work of the tail to leave the former skipper stranded on 145 not out, and the visitors all out for 364.
It was an uncharacteristically stagnant performance from Australia’s lower order, who usually offer at least some form of run support – and when Alex Carey was dismissed at 6-329, the Aussies would still have had their eyes on passing 400.
But Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Nathan Lyon, and Mitchell Swepson combined to score just 13, while Smith was left just short of 150 in his finest knock since the 2019 Ashes.
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It was just his second century since that historic series, as he and Marnus Labuschagne combined to score more than two thirds of Australia’s runs.
Prabath Jayasuriya continued on from his solid first day to claim the scalps of Carey, Starc, and Lyon on day two, finishing up with figures of 6-118.
Sri Lanka were up against the wall following a COVID outbreak that forced them into multiple team changes, but have given themselves a decent chance after a tidy start to the day.
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