Pat Cummins took a career-best 6-23 to help Australia crush Sri Lanka by an innings and 40 runs inside three days in the series opening day-night test in Brisbane on Saturday.
Pat Cummins celebrates taking the wicket. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
The paceman completed his maiden 10-wicket match haul as Australia bundled out Sri Lanka for 139, five fewer than the tourists had managed in their first innings, to register only their second test win of the summer at the Gabba.
Jhye Richardson claimed two second innings wickets in his impressive debut with Australia comfortably maintaining their record of not having lost a test at the Gabba since 1988.
Resuming at 17-1 Saturday, Sri Lanka's hopes of saving the match were dealt a heavy blow when Dinesh Chandimal and Kusal Mendis fell in consecutive overs from Cummins at the start of the day.
After taking a wicket with the final ball of day two, it took Cummins just two balls on day three to get his next wicket, squaring-up the scoreless Chandimal and finding the edge which ballooned to Kurtis Patterson at gully.
In his next over, Cummins teased an attempted drive from Mendis (one), who edged to Joe Burns at second slip.
Lahiru Thirimanne (32) and Roshen Silva (three) briefly stemmed the flow of wickets, before Cummins got his fourth, having Silva caught by Burns in the slips to reduce the tourists to 35-4.
Right on tea, Richardson produced a fast yorker to bowl Dhananjaya de Silva for 14.
Cummins got a deserved fifth wicket but in controversial circumstances when he had Thirimanne adjudged caught behind, a decision upheld by the TV umpire despite no conclusive evidence Thirimanne had edged the ball.
Niroshan Dickwella tried one attacking shot too many off Richardson and holed out to Marcus Harris at square leg, before Cummins' sixth wicket came from a spectacular catch by Patterson at gully off Dilruwan Perera.
Suranga Lakmal was last man out when he was stumped by Tim Paine for Nathan Lyon's only wicket of the innings.
Lahiru Kumara did not bat after Sri Lanka team management confirmed Saturday the paceman had torn his hamstring during the second day and is likely to be unavailable for the second test at Canberra's Manuka Oval beginning on Friday.
- Reuters