Inglis debuts, Konstas makes way in Galle

Josh Inglis's patient wait to become a Test cricketer has been rewarded as he was presented with Baggy Green Cap number 470 as Australia won the toss and batted in the opening game of the two-match series in Galle.

Inglis, a wicketkeeper whose game has evolved so completely he has been named for his debut as a specialist batter with Alex Carey taking the gloves, received his cap from fellow Western Australian and former Test opener Geoff Marsh who is in Sri Lanka with a tour group.

Inglis is listed to bat at number five in the order, with Carey at six ahead of Beau Webster.

Australia XI: Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith (c), Josh Inglis, Beau Webster, Alex Carey, Mitch Starc, Todd Murphy, Nathan Lyon, Matt Kuhnemann

 

Sri Lanka XI: Dimuth Karunaratne, Oshada Fernando, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Kamindu Mendis, Dhanajaya De Silva (c), Kusal Mendis, Prabath Jayasuriya, Nishan Peiris, Jeffrey Vandersay, Asitha Fernando

Inglis's parents Martin and Sarah stood proudly alongside during the presentation having made the trip from Perth, while his partner Megan watched from a distance as she nursed the couple's young son Oscar.

As stand-in skipper Steve Smith foreshadowed on match eve, Travis Head has been elevated to open alongside Usman Khwaja with teenage talent Sam Konstas omitted from the XI that won the final Test against India at the SCG earlier this month.

Smith noted yesterday Australia's starting line-up had been revamped to reflect the vastly different conditions encountered in Sri Lanka, and that 19-year-old Konstas would gain invaluable experience from this tour even if that was confined to batting in the practice nets.

Left-arm spinner Matthew Kuhnemann and off-spinner Todd Murphy, both of whom played their most recent Tests in 2023, have also been recalled with the bare Galle pitch tipped to take turn later in the game.

Regular captain Pat Cummins is absent from this series with his wife Becky due to give birth to the couple's second child while he also recovers from ankle soreness, with Scott Boland also missing out as Australia opted for spin.

Alltounder Webster, who memorably made his debut against India in the final match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy Series, provides a second seam-bowling option alongside Mitchell Starc.

Smith said yesterday he held full confidence in Webster’s capacity to share the new ball with Starc if needed, which helped selectors make the tough call to leave out Boland who was player of the match in Australia’s most recent Test against India at Sydney.

"He stands the seam up really nicely, he hits good areas and whether it's him opening the bowling with Mitchell Starc, or a spinner opening there's always plenty of options there," Smith said.

"But he's certainly someone who could definitely take the new ball."

Having faced scrutiny prior to the home summer about the ageing profile of a Test team that featured no player under 30, Australia have blooded Nathan McSweeney (25), Konstas (19), Webster (31) and now Inglis (29).

Inglis, who was born in Leeds, becomes the twelfth Australia men's Test player to hail from the UK and the first to earn a Baggy Green since fellow Yorkshire product Matthew Renshaw who made his debut at Adelaide in 2016.

The 29-year-old migrated to Australia with his family in 2010, and has played 26 One-Day Internationals and 29 T20Is since making his first white-ball appearance for his adopted country in 2022.

As Smith noted in his pre-match media conference yesterday, Inglis's batting prowess against spin bowling and ability to score all around the wicket having gained previous white-ball experience on the subcontinent.

"He's quite comfortable where his game's at," said of Inglis who has been part of Australia's Test squad in England and during the recent home summer and was a member of the 2023 ODI World Cup-winning team in India.

"He's been around for quite a while, played a lot of cricket.

"Obviously hasn't played a Test match but I think he provides really good skills against spin.

"He scores all around the ground, he's got all the shots, he's got a good defence so I think he's someone … who will do a really good job."

Smith will almost certainly become the 15th men's Test batter – and the fourth Australian behind Ricky Ponting (13,378), Allan Border (11,174) and Steve Waugh (10,927) – to reach the 10,000-runs milestone.

Smith needs a solitary run to join the revered club of all-time greats, and should he do it in the first innings at Galle – the 205th Test knock of his 15-year career, he will become the fifth-fastest in the game's 148-year history to get there.

Only West Indian Brian Lara, India's Sachin Tendulkar, Sri Lanka hero Kumar Sangakkara (all 195) and Ponting (196) have reached the benchmark from fewer trips to the batting crease.

"I've tried to put it out of my mind, I probably thought about it too much in Sydney a few weeks back," Smith said yesterday having been stranded on 9,999 runs on his home ground in Sydney against India earlier this month.

"So that’s out of my mind now, I'm just going to out and play and hopefully I can tick that one off.

"It would be pretty cool.

"I've never really been one for milestones but to tick off 10,000 with those guys (Border, Waugh, Ponting) that would be pretty special."

Sri Lanka have been forced to replace opener Pathum Nissanka – who sustained a groin injury while batting in a recent ODI in New Zealand – with Oshada Fernando.

The hosts have also opted for three specialist spinners with left-arm orthodox Prabath Jayasuriya, leg-spinner Jeffrey Vandersay and off-spinner Nishan Peiris who made his debut in the most recent Test played at Galle, against New Zealand last year.

Asitha Fernando is the sole specialist quick, with seam-bowling support from veteran allrounder Angelo Mathews if needed.

Australia currently holds the Warne-Muralidaran Trophy having won it on home soil in 2019 before the most recent battle between the teams at Galle in 2022 ended in a 1-1 draw.

Qantas Tour of Sri Lanka

First Test: January 29-February 2, Galle (3.30pm AEDT)

Second Test: February 6-10, Galle (3.30pm AEDT)

Sri Lanka Test squad: Dhananjaya de Silva (c), Dimuth Karunaratne, Pathum Nissanka (subject to fitness), Oshada Fernando, Lahiru Udara, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Kamindu Mendis, Kusal Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Sonal Dinusha, Prabath Jayasuriya, Jeffrey Vandersay, Nishan Peiris, Asitha Fernando, Vishwa Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Milan Rathnayake

Australia Test squad: Steve Smith (c), Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Travis Head (vc), Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Matt Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Nathan McSweeney, Todd Murphy, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster

First ODI: February 12, Colombo (3.30pm AEDT)

Second ODI: February 14, Colombo (3.30pm AEDT)