LIVE: 21yo rising star makes shock debut as Aussies swing axe for second Sri Lanka Test

Cooper Connolly will become Australia’s 471st men’s Test cricketer this week, making his debut for the second Test against Sri Lanka in Galle.

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The West Australian all-rounder, who replaces spinner Todd Murphy in the starting XI, received his baggy green from former Australian Test batter Simon Katich.

The toss is scheduled for 3pm AEDT before the first ball at 3.30pm.

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DAY 1 PREVIEW

Steve Smith’s men blew the hosts out of the water in the opening contest, winning by an innings and 242 runs — the heaviest defeat Sri Lanka has suffered in Test cricket.

That game — also played in Galle — was on a good batting deck, but the pitch for the second Test looks a different beast altogether.

“This looks like a very dry surface. Dare say it’s going to turn square,” Smith told reporters on Wednesday.

“We’re not naming a team just yet. We’ll take a call in the morning once we have a better read on the conditions.” Despite already bagging the Warne-Murali Trophy and a place in the World Test Championship final secured, Smith has no intention of taking the foot off the pedal and wants a sweep.

“I thought we played really well last week, controlling the game from the outset. We didn’t do that last time we were here, so it would be a great achievement to win 2-0,” he said.

Meanwhile, Australia looks set to swing the axe, with young gun Connolly reportedly locked in to play his first Test.

SEN commentator Tom Morris reported on X that Connolly “will debut today for Australia”, adding: “That’s a lock.”

The 21-year-old bowls left-arm spin and is a handy batsmen, tallying the third most runs of any player in BBL14 for the Perth Scorchers.

While there has been doubts surrounding Marnus Labuschagne’s place in the XI, Connolly is more likely to replace Murphy, according to Morris, rather than Beau Webster, who was unused as a bowler in the first Test. Murphy took one wicket from his 16 overs last week.

Labuschagne did not face Australia’s frontline tweakers and instead bowled his off-breaks and then faced the squad’s back-up quicks at training, sparking rumblings he could be dropped.

However, with Sam Konstas returning home to play Sheffield Shield cricket, Australia’s top order will likely remain unchanged.

However, Connolly could slot in at No.7 after impressing at training in Sri Lanka.

“It’s another batter that bowls more than handy spin, and spins the same way as (Matt) Kuhnemann,” Smith said.

“We’ve got a few that go the same way as Nathan (Lyon) and Todd (Murphy).

“I think he’s only bowled (96 balls) back in Australia, but it’s entirely different the way you bowl. And I think the way he does bowl and the way the ball comes out suits him quite nicely.”

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka are expected to shuffle the pack for the second Test after the last bruising innings loss.

Opening batsman Pathum Nissanka is set to return, having recovered from a groin injury, and will replace Oshada Fernando.

Off-spinner Ramesh Mendis is likely to come back into the XI in place of Nishan Peiris, whose 41 wicketless overs leaked 189 runs in the first Test.

“Pathum has been declared fit and he will play. But we haven’t finalised our bowling combination yet,” Sri Lanka skipper Dhananjaya de Silva said.

De Silva admitted that Sri Lanka let themselves down with the bat in the opener.

“It wasn’t the typical Galle wicket last time around. It was a disappointing Test match because we should have batted much better than that,” he said.

“Too many guys got starts but failed to kick on. We know where things went wrong, and we’re looking to correct those mistakes.”

Sri Lanka will also be playing for one of their finest openers, Dimuth Karunaratne, who is set to retire after what will be his 100th Test appearance.

“Dimuth has been a fabulous leader and an exceptional player,” de Silva said.

“He has done some amazing things for the team and, without a doubt, ranks as the best opening batter Sri Lanka has ever produced. We want to give him a fitting farewell.”

Squads

Australia: Steve Smith (capt), Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Alex Carey (wk), Cooper Connolly, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Matt Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Nathan McSweeney, Todd Murphy, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster.

Sri Lanka: Dhananjaya de Silva (capt), Dimuth Karunaratne, Oshada Fernando, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Kamindu Mendis, Kusal Mendis (wk), Sadeera Samarawickrama, Prabath Jayasuriya, Jeffrey Vandersay, Nishan Peiris, Asitha Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Milan Rathnayake.