The first four-day fixture between Australia A and Sri Lanka A kicked off today at the Mahinda Rajapakse International Cricket Stadium in Hambantota.
After winning the toss and electing to bat first, Australia A recovered from a tricky position of 5 for 98 to 379 thanks to a lower order surge.
Young left arm seamer Dilshan Madushanka, who opened the bowling for Sri Lanka A, bowled exceptionally to remove the Top 3 of Australia inside the first 5 overs to put them under pressure early in the day. Lakshitha Rasanjana who also joined the party clinched two more wickets as the visitors were reeling on 98 for 5.
Josh Philippe and Aaron Hardie came to the rescue of the visitors as they combined to put together 125 runs for the 6th wicket in 124 deliveries. Suminda Lakshan managed to remove both the set batters but the Australian lower order continued to attack as the Sri Lanka A bowlers failed to capitalize on an advantageous position.
The 8th wicket partnership of 118 between Nathan McAndrew (92) and Mark Steketee (47) managed to push the Australia A total to 379.
For the hosts, Dilshan Madushanka grabbed 4 for 62 while Suminda Lakshan and Lakshitha Rasanjana took 3 wickets each.
As the Australian innings ended in the 88th over of the day, stumps were called for Day 1 and Sri Lanka A will begin their first innings replying to the 379 by the visitors on Day 2. Sri Lanka A will be disappointed for letting Australia A off the hook but a good batting performance will give them more than enough time to mount a solid comeback.
Day 2 of the encounter will begin tomorrow at 10.00AM Local Time.
