Dubai, Feb 9 (UNI) A 2-0 clean sweep against Sri Lanka has helped Australia finish solidly in the 2023-25 World Test Championship.
Australia’s trimuph in the Border-Gavaskar series against India helped them make their second consecutive World Test Championship Final and a 2-0 series win against Sri Lanka helped them solidify the No.2 position on the table.
They finish on a PCT of 67.54, just behind South Africa, who topped the table at 69.44.
After securing the first Test in Galle by a massive margin of an innings and 242 runs, Australia kept up the momentum in the second with another dominating performance at the same venue.
Opting to bat first, Sri Lanka only managed to put up 257 in the first innings with Nathan Lyon spinning his web to rattle the top-order along with Matt Kuhnemann.
Only Dinesh Chandimal (74) and Kusal Mendis (85 not out) offered some respite for the hosts. Lyon and Kuhnemann picked up three wickets each and were ably supported by Mitchell Starc who slowed down the lower-middle and lower-order, also claiming three wickets, an ICC report said.
In reponse, after a rocky start, the dependable pair of Steve Smith and Alex Carey came to Australia’s rescue, putting up a massive double-century stand and bringing up their respective hundreds. Thanks to the duo, the visitors gained a crucial 157-run first-innings lead.
Both Lyon and Kuhnemann were equally agressive in the second innings as the Sri Lankans had no answers to their onslaught. Kusal Mendis brought up another fifty and Angelo Mathews fought with a 76 but most of the batters failed to convert their good starts.
In the end, Sri Lanka only manged a 74-run lead and with almost 2 days of play left, Australia achieved the meagre target losing just one wicket.
The end of the second match also signalled the end of Dimuth Karunaratne’s Test career, who had announced his retirement earlier this week.
It was Karunaratne’s 100th Test appearance for Sri Lanka and the end of a career spanning almost 13 years.
All eyes will be next on the World Test Championship Final at Lord’s to be played between South Africa and Australia from June 11 to 15.
