Sri Lanka’s lead passes 300 after Herath hat-trick

Tea Sri Lanka 281 and 143 for 6 (de Silva 19*, D Perera 12*, Starc 3-33) lead Australia 106 (Warner 42, D Perera 4-29, Herath 4-35) by 318 runsLive scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Taken in isolation, Sri Lanka’s score at tea on the second day in Galle – 143 for 6 – was underwhelming. But in Test cricket, no innings is an island. The story of this day was not Sri Lanka’s batting after lunch but their bowling before it, which included Rangana Herath becoming just the second Sri Lankan to take a Test hat-trick, and Australia’s collapse for 106. It was Australia’s lowest ever total against Sri Lanka, and has probably decided the series.

After just five sessions of this Test, Australia were already facing a chase of at least 319 runs, though with Dhananjaya de Silva still at the crease on 19 alongside Dilruwan Perera on 12, that target was only going to grow further. Nothing in Australia’s batting in this campaign – and certainly not in the first innings of this Test – would suggest they will get close to their goal. But for now, they can do no more than try to finish Sri Lanka off cheaply.

Sri Lanka had gone to lunch at 31 for 3 and after the break added 112 runs for the loss of three more wickets. It was hardly a boring session, yet could not compare to the 11 wickets that tumbled before lunch. Notably, Australia’s spinners struggled both to pose a threat to Sri Lanka’s batsmen and to contain them: Nathan Lyon and debutant Jon Holland both leaked more than five an over as Angelo Mathews led an attacking approach for Sri Lanka.

Kusal Perera also ticked the score along at nearly a run a ball before he was bowled trying to cut Lyon’s quicker ball for 35 off 38, and Dinesh Chandimal edged behind for 13 to give Mitchell Starc his third wicket of the innings and eighth of the match. Mathews struck five boundaries on his way to 47 before he was bowled trying to reverse sweep Lyon.

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