Sri Lanka vs Australia 2025: Match Preview, 1st Test

Sri Lanka are set to face Australia in the first Test of the two-match series, starting Wednesday, January 29.

Published - 28 Jan 2025, 15:45 IST | Updated - 28 Jan 2025, 15:55 IST

6 Min Read

The two-match Test series between Sri Lanka (SL) and Australia (AUS) will get underway with the first game beginning on Wednesday, January 29 at the Galle International Stadium. Notably, the last time these two sides faced off in the longest format was in 2022, with the series ending in a draw.

The Dhananjaya de Silva-led side would be eager to bounce back after a tough series loss to South Africa. The team will rely on its core to counter the Aussie challenge. Dhananjaya de Silva, Kamindu Mendis and Pathum Nissanka, who all have injury concerns, have been included in the squad. On the bowling front, the home side is banking on spinners like Prabath Jayasuriya and Nishan Peiris, with pitches expected to favor spin.

Interestingly, Australia have been in great form recently, with a historic 3-1 series win over India in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The side also clinched their spot for the finals of the World Test Championship. For this series, the Australian side will be without their regular skipper, Pat Cummins, due to the birth of his second child. Veteran batter Steve Smith has been appointed as the captain while Travis Head will serve as the vice-captain.

Furthermore, Smith mentioned that Head will be opening the innings alongside Usman Khawaja, while Sam Konstas, who had a brilliant debut series against India, will be preferred lower down the order due to his lack of experience playing in Asian conditions. Spinners Matt Kuhnemann and Todd Murphy made a return for the visitors, though the team will be without Josh Hazlewood (due to calf injury) and Mitchell Marsh, with the duo focussing on the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy.

Match Details

Match	Sri Lanka vs Australia, 1st Test
Venue	Galle International Stadium
Date and Time	Wednesday-Sunday, January 29 - February 02, 2025, 10:00 AM IST

Pitch Report

The Galle International Stadium is expected to help the spinners, especially as the match progresses. The batters will find it more difficult as time goes on and they would have to make the most of the first innings. The average first innings score at the venue is 369. Out of the 46 Tests that the stadium has hosted, 25 have been won by teams batting first and 15 by the ones batting second.

Click Here: SL vs AUS, 1st Test - Live Scores

Head-To-Head Records

Matches	33
Won by Australia	20
Won by Sri Lanka	05
Draw	08
No Result	00
First-ever Fixture	22-26 Apr 1983
Most-recent Fixture	8-11 July 2022

SL vs AUS 2025 Probable Predicted XIs

Sri Lanka

Playing XI: Kamindu Mendis (wk), Dinesh Chandimal, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Dimuth Karunaratne, Angelo Mathews, Kamindu Mendis, Dhanjaya de Silva (c), Milan Priyanath, Prabath Jayasuriya, Jeffrey Vandersay, Nishan Peiris

Australia

Playing XI: Usman Khawaja, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith (c), Alex Carey (wk), Sam Konstas, Beau Webster, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Kuhnemann, Todd Murphy

SL vs AUS 2025 Broadcast details

The matches will be telecast on Sony Sports Network and live streamed on Sony LIV.

Also Check: SL vs AUS Dream11 Prediction

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