Highlights Sri Lanka vs Australia, 2nd Test, Day 3: Perera's Six Helps SL Win Series 2-0

So, that wraps up the formalities of this Test. Sri Lanka will go to Colombo eyeing a whitewash and it would take a really special Australian performance to deny the hosts that pleasure. The final Test starts at the SSC on 13th August. Tune in at 1000 IST for all the action of that game. For now you can switch to the Zimbabwe-New Zealand match tab to enjoy some cricketing action. Cheers!

ANGELO MATHEWS is happy at his side beating the no.1 team and feels that Sri Lanka played outstanding cricket. Opines that the toss was crucial and is glad that he won it. A decent first innings score was vital on such a pitch and he is happy that they got a decent total. Praises Dilruwan for rising to the occasion and states they always backed the off spinner. Also lauds Starc for performing well.

STEVEN SMITH admits that it's been a tough Test from the first day itself. Opines that 281 was an above par score from SL and then accepts that his side batted too poorly in the first innings. Says that the first innings deficit cost them the game as chasing 400-plus was always going to be tough. Agrees that playing spin on such tracks is very challenging and that they have to find a way to counter it. Points to Australia's poor stats in Asia in recent times and hopes that they can turn it around.

DILRUWAN PERERA (MAN OF THE MATCH) says that he didn't do well in Pallekele but was able to find his rhythm in Galle. States that he is happy to contribute to the team's win.

With a target of 413 to win, Australia started disastrously, losing three wickets in just 6 overs before stumps on day two thereby all but sealing their own fate in the game. It was only a matter of time on the third day before the Lankans finished the game and they duly did it well inside an hour after lunch. It's the eighth successive Test defeat for Australia in Asia and plenty of problems for the tourists to ponder. Dilruwan Perera shone brightly with a fifty and 10 wickets in the match - first ever Lankan to achieve this feat.

Starc was easily the pick of the Aussie bowlers in the match. He snared a hard-working fifer in the first innings and claimed a 6-fer in the second to get a match haul of 11 wickets. Australia did threaten to fight back by picking early wickets in the Lankan second innings but the big first innings lead meant that the hosts were always just a partnership away from safety. That's what happened as K.Perera stepped in again with Mathews while Dilruwan and Dhananjaya also chipped in with handy knocks to swell the lead.

When you post just 106 in the first innings of a Test and concede a 175-run lead, you are bound to lose most of the matches. That's precisely what happened as the Australians were clueless in the first innings to the guile of Herath and Dilruwan on a track that aided the spinners in a big way. However, the surface was never unplayable as the hosts' batsmen showed in both their innings. SL got to 281 on the first day thanks to another Mendis special with help from K.Perera and skipper Mathews.

Smith and Warner started positively but once the latter departed, the innings imploded with the Aussie skipper too succumbing after getting a start. The middle and lower order hung around a bit but it was only delaying the inevitable as the visitors continued to be decimated by the spin attack from the Lankans. The Australian batsmen did use the sweep more in this innings but overall their approach continued to lack confidence.

It took only 30 minutes after the lunch break for Sri Lanka to wrap up the final 3 Australian wickets to clinch their first ever Test series victory against Australia. Dilruwan Perera took 2 of those scalps to finish with a 6-fer and a match haul of 10 wickets before Mendis' brilliance mopped up the final wicket. The visitors started the day needing 388 more runs to win with seven wickets left and it was always going to be a difficult task on this dicey surface.

OUT! A BRILLIANT PIECE OF FIELDING BY KUSAL MENDIS AT SHORT LEG. Around off, Nevill flicks it straight to short leg who grabs the ball low on the bounce and hits the stumps directly! Nevill was on the move and failed to get back to the crease. That was a lightning quick reaction by Mendis! It was referred to the third umpire and the replays showed that Nevill was just short of the crease. With that, Sri Lanka win by 229 runs and seal the series!