HOBART, AUSTRALIA - NOVEMBER 20: Mitchell Johnson of Australia is congratulated by team-mates after taking the wicket of Chamara Silva of Sri Lanka during day five of the Second test match between Australia and Sri Lanka at Bellerive Oval on November 20, 2007 in Hobart, Australia. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)
They’ve been playing Test cricket since 1981, but when it comes to red-ball contests against Australia, Sri Lanka have predominantly found themselves on the receiving end.
Test matches between these two nations have historically seen Australia bludgeoning Sri Lanka into oblivion, even when Muttiah Muralitharan, Kumar Sangakkara and Aravinda De Silva were at the peak of their powers.
Especially in Australia, Sri Lanka are yet to win a match against them despite having been a Test cricket nation for over 40 years.
These repeated thrashings were dispersed with sporadic success in the 80s and 90s, however the turn of the century saw Sri Lanka somewhat come to terms with playing Australia in Test cricket.
Red-ball cricket between these two teams suddenly became more competitive and has produced some memorable matches that are certainly worth an honourable mention. Here are my top five best Test matches between Australia and Sri Lanka.
Less than five years in after gaining Test match status, Sri Lanka had already turned heads on the international stage when they secured their first ever victory against India in 1985.
They were still considered minnows though and struggled to win away from home. On their second Test tour of Australia in 1989, they certainly got no closer to achieving an overseas win however the way they brought the fight to the Aussies in the first Test at Brisbane remains a match that is still highly regarded to this day, as it heralded the emergence of Aravinda De Silva.
De Silva had been a popular name amongst Aussie fans prior to this tour, as he was the hero behind Sri Lanka’s first ever ODI win against Australia on their soil back in 1985.
Despite his diminutive stature, De Silva had developed a reputation for being an enterprising and attacking batsman, unafraid to take on the likes of Australia’s dangerous fast men like Geoff Lawson, Craig McDermott, Rodney Hogg and Merv Hughes.
After Australia scored 367 in their first innings thanks to an excellent 106 from Tom Moody, many felt Test cricket’s newcomers would be unable to compete given the frailties in their batting and unfamiliarity of Australian conditions.
De Silva thought otherwise. He batted for over eight hours, scoring an incredible 167 which featured a vast array of cuts, pulls, hooks and beautiful on-driving as he came to terms with the extra bounce and seam movement on a spicy ‘Gabba track.
He lifted Sri Lanka to 418 in their first dig, but with no time remaining for Sri Lanka to bat a second innings, the match was declared a draw shortly after Mark Taylor brought up his century on the fifth day.
Arguably one of the most exhilarating and dramatic Test matches ever played between these two nations.
This match was a real opportunity for Sri Lanka to secure their first ever Test victory over Australia except for a chubby, blonde-haired legspinner who spoiled proceedings for the home team and singlehandedly plucked a win for his side out of nowhere.
To this day, Allan Border still calls this win “the greatest heist since the Great Train Robbery” and rightly so, because Sri Lanka dominated all five days of this game and still lost inside a session.
After winning the toss and electing to field, Sri Lanka’s young seam attack bulldozed Australia’s batting line-up.
The visitors were teetering at eight for 162 before a stubborn Healy battled hard for a gritty 66 not-out that resurrected Australia to 256.
In reply Sri Lanka were merciless, scoring at frenetic pace with Asanka Gurusinghe, Arjuna Ranatunga and Romesh Kaluwitharana all scoring massive hundreds as the home team notched up a mammoth 547 declared in their first innings.
It was also the first time they had achieved such a feat against Australia in Test cricket.
Australia battled hard in their second innings, being bowled out for 471 despite none of the visitors scoring a century. With a victory target of just 181 required in the fourth innings, the jubilant Sri Lankans were now confident that a historic maiden Test victory against Australia was in their sights, and it should have been.
Although they wobbled slightly, at five for 133 needing less than 50 runs to win, many would have assumed that Sri Lanka would have coasted towards victory. Even Australia appeared to have mentally clocked out, their body language depicting the signs of a defeated cricketer.
But not Allan Border. In the final session of day five, he spontaneously threw the ball to a young Shane Warne, who back then had Test match bowling average of over 300 and was a mere shadow of the champion cricketer he would eventually become.
Even in this match, Warne had been smashed all over the park by the Sri Lankans in their first innings, conceding 107 runs off his 22 overs at an abysmal 4.86 runs per over. Hardly the hero you need in such a delicate, do-or-die situation for the Aussies.
And yet, Border’s sudden, inspirational decision to allow Warne to bowl proved to be a masterstroke. The legspinner completely turned the match on its head and claimed Sri Lanka’s last three wickets without conceding a run! Australia got out of jail and ended up famously winning the match by just 16 runs, a result no one saw coming.
Whilst many believe that the emergence of Shane Warne began with his famous ‘ball of the century’ to Mike Gatting in the 1993 Ashes, this heist against Sri Lanka in 1992 should have rightly been anointed as the first sign of the greatness that was to come.
An elusive maiden Test match victory against Australia would have to wait another seven years for Sri Lanka, but when it finally came, it was an act of utter domination by the home team in a low-scoring affair that was completed in just over two and half days.
Australia failed to capitalise on securing a sizeable first innings total, despite winning the toss and electing to bat, being bundled out for just 188.
Except for Ponting’s excellent 96 and a determined 41 from Jason Gillespie, the visitors were subject to an aggressive bowling display from the Sri Lankans. Spin king Muttiah Muralitharan bagging four wickets and Chaminda Vaas and Nuwan Zoysa also taking three apiece.
In reply Sri Lanka didn’t fare much better in their first innings, although they secured a slender lead of just 46 runs with Aravinda De Silva top-scoring with 78. Although Warne collected a five-for, it would be one of those rare occasions where he could not spin the Aussies to victory.
Australia’s second innings almost mirrored their dismal performance in the first, with Ricky Ponting once again top-scoring with 51 whilst the rest of his side collapsed again for just 140. The visitors also effectively played with nine men as Jason Gillespie and captain Steve Waugh were ruled out of the game because the two had suffered a sickening head-on collision whilst attempting a catch in Sri Lanka’s second innings.
Both had to be taken to Colombo hospital as Waugh had suffered a broken nose whilst Gillespie required surgery on his shoulder. With such key players now marked as ‘absent hurt’ for the Australians, the home team had received yet another stroke of fortune to win the game.
A target of just 95 runs for victory was a walk in the park for Sri Lanka, although offspinner Colin Miller cheekily snared three quick wickets to provide a slimmer of hope for the Aussies. However veterans Aravinda De Silva and Arjuna Ranatunga batted watchfully to shut down any further carnage, ensuring a safe, comfortable and well-deserved maiden Test match victory for their country against Australia. Sri Lanka would not taste this success again for another 17 years.
This match was probably one of the best chances Sri Lanka ever had to secure their first ever Test match victory against Australia on their soil, and it was bungled by a fatal umpiring error. Sangakkara played one of the best innings of his life in this game but was unluckily given out when replays conclusively showed he hadn’t hit it all.
From there it all went downhill for Sri Lanka, but this match deserves a special mention because of the sheer determination they showed to take this game to the final day. It kept things very interesting.
Australia won the toss and wasted no time showing why they were the best Test team of the 2000s. Phil Jacques and Michael Hussey both batted on turbo-mode, notching up masterful hundreds with fifties from Michael Clarke, Andrew Symonds and Adam Gilchrist taking the Aussies to an imposing first innings score of 542 for five declared.
In reply Sri Lanka wilted, although they scored just enough in their first innings to avoid an enforced follow-on, thanks to a gutsy maiden Test ton on Australian soil for Mahela Jayawardene. They were always behind in this game though, thanks to a Brett Lee fast-bowling masterclass. Lee collected two four-fors in both of Sri Lanka’s innings, but as long as Sangakkara was out there, the visitors still believed.
Realising that they needed to give themselves time to bowl out the opposition, Australia declared again in their second innings at two for 210, leaving Sri Lanka with a monstrous target of 507 to chase for victory.
Impossible was probably the word that was on everyone’s lips as Sri Lanka had not demonstrated any assured ability to bat confidently in Australian conditions, but the fact that they still managed to bring the victory margin down to under 100 runs showed remarkable resolve in their performance.
Sangakkara batted like a god that day. His second innings 192 was full of his trademark cover-drives, sweeps, pulls and the odd hook and cut shot where need be. He was brave and courageous in the way he handled Brett Lee and a young Mitchell Johnson, having the audacity to step back and even late cut their extreme pace regularly through the vacant third man region for bulk runs.
With only Malinga and the tail for support, the Sri Lankan camp began to hope, and the creases on Ponting’s forehead continued to grow.
However, it all came crashing to a head, as Sangakkara was wrongly given out caught behind by umpire Rudi Koertzen whilst attempting a pull shot off a Stuart Clark bumper that never touched his bat.
As a livid and visibly upset Sangakkara departed the ground, so too did Sri Lanka’s hopes. Australia could breathe a sigh of relief, as they wrapped up the game with a 96-run victory.
A match-winning 176 from a 21 year old Kusal Mendis ensured that Sri Lanka’s second-ever Test victory over Australia would be won in an emphatic manner that nobody ever saw coming. Especially given how it started, that the game scraped its way past lunch on the final day is somewhat of an incredulous feat itself.
Winning the toss and batting first did no favours for Sri Lanka, as they were embarrassingly rolled for a paltry 117. Nathan Lyon and Steve O’Keefe were the chief destroyers in Australia’s spin department, taking three and two wickets each respectively.
Although Starc was expensive, he claimed two scalps. However the pick of Australia’s bowlers in Sri Lanka’s first innings was the ever-miserly Josh Hazlewood, conceding just 2.10 runs per over in his three-for.
Australia fared no better in their first innings, as they were also demolished for 203 thanks to some spin bowling wizardry from veteran left-arm tweaker Rangana and debutant Lakshan Sandakan.
Sri Lanka’s spinners claimed eight wickets in Australia’s first innings, with doubts around the visitors’ frailties against playing quality spin bowling resurfacing once more.
Although the visitors had a sizeable 86 run lead going into Sri Lanka’s second, any hopes around whether that would matter at all were snuffed out thanks to a brilliant maiden Test century from Kusal Mendis.
With helpful cameos from Dinesh Chandimal, Dhananjaya De Silva and even Rangana Herath, Sri Lanka managed to pile on a hefty 353 in their second dig, leaving a victory target of 268 for a beleaguered and overwhelmed Australia.
Scoring that many runs on the last day on a pitch taking that much turn would prove to be too much for the visitors.
Rangana Herath made this known as he ran ragged through Australia, taking five wickets for just 55 runs, leaving the visitors embarrassed, flummoxed and utterly bamboozled by his wily left-arm spin.
Steve Smith batted well for a stubborn 55 and at times appeared as the only Australian batsman capable of playing on a turning wicket. However as wickets continued to tumble around him, it was apparent that Sri Lanka’s commanding 106-run win would merely become a formality.