Sri Lanka vs Australia 2nd Test: 3 Player Battles to Watch Out
In what promises to be an exciting and thrilling contest, Steve Smith-led Australia and Dhananjaya de Silva's Sri Lanka are set to lock horns versus each other in the second and the last match of the two-match Test-Series at the Galle International Stadium of Galle from the 6th of February onwards (Wednesday).
In the opening encounter of the series, the Mighty Aussies secured a comfortable victory by an inning and 242 runs and this win helped them to take an unassailable lead of 1-0 in the two-match series. In such a situation, the Dhananjaya de Silva-led Sri Lanka would be looking to make a strong comeback by rectifying their mistakes in the second match.
Ahead of this exciting contest, some thrilling player battles will be seen taking place between the star players of both teams which can go on to affect the outcome of the match. We will be taking a look at those player battles in this article
While the Kangaroos have already taken the lead in the series, the home side will have the chance to make a strong comeback by taking advantage of the home conditions on offer. It will be interesting to see which team finishes out on top in these player battles and which team succumbs to the pressure.
Dinesh Chandimal versus Matthew Kuhnemann
Australia's left-arm orthodox spinner Matthew Kuhnemann failed to create an impact with the ball in the first ball, ending the match with 0 scalps to his name but he can trouble Sri Lankan batters on the spinning track of Galle.
This will be especially very challenging for experienced wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Chandimal. He is a good player of spin, has a good record against them and also he knows the conditions of Galle quite well but the variations of Kuhnemann can trouble him in the second Test-Match.
Prabhat Jayasuriya versus Usman Khawaja
Australia's experienced opening batter Usman Khawaja is in great form with the bat and he also possesses' an excellent batting record on Subcontinental surfaces. While the Australian team management would be happy to see him performing, they might be a little worried in the 2nd match as experienced left-arm spinner Prabhat Jayasuriya can trouble him a lot.
The 33-year-old has excellent variations up his sleeve and has knack of performing brilliantly in spin-friendly conditions and home conditions. He also got the better of the Southpaw in the opening encounter, dismissing him when he was batting on the score of 232 runs and Jayasuriya would be looking to get the better of Khawaja again in the final match of the series.
Other notable player battles
Apart from the two above-mentioned player battles, the battle between elite Aussie off-spinner Nathan Lyon and promising Sri Lankan batter Kamindu Mendis will also be worth watching out for.
Angelo Mathews will have to rely on his batting technique to tackle the speed and swing of Mitchell Starc and at the same time, Asitha Fernando has the ability to trouble the Australian duo of Josh Inglis and Marnus Labuschagne with his pace and bounce.
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