fc188 Australia Tour Of Sri Lanka Guide: Schedule, Squads, Preview - All You Need To Know

Steve Smith. Photo: X/ICC Steve Smith. Photo: X/ICC

Having already secured their berth in the ICC World Test Championship final, Australia will tour Sri Lanka for two Tests and as many one-day internationals starting January 29 in Galle.  (More Cricket News)

The Test side will be lead by Steve Smith in the absence of regular skipper Pat Cummins, who is on paternity leave. Smith himself was a doubtful starter after suffering a freak elbow injury during the Big Bash League, but he has since been cleared to play and join the team's training camp in Dubai.

The eccentric right-handed batter has a history of elbow problems, and the injury sustained to his right arm reminded him of the one he had surgery on in 2019. He thus admitted to having been a "little bit worried".

"It was in the Big Bash game the other night, I caught Davey (David Warner) over the boundary and lobbed it back into the field, then threw that ball back in quite hard," Smith said. "And straight away I thought 'oh geez, that hurt a little bit'.

"That was a similar sort of feeling to when I ruptured my ligament back in 2019, so I was a little bit worried for a little bit. But scans showed fortunately my ligament is still intact, the one that I got repaired. I've got a little bit of muscle damage, and it's a small millimetre of the ligament on the bone that's doing something.

"It's probably going to stop me throwing for a little while, but in terms of batting I'm pretty comfortable. I'll be able to get into it and play with some tape on it," he added.

Meanwhile, Australia have another injury concern in the form of left-arm spinner Matthew Kuhnemann, who had surgery on a fractured right thumb he sustained against Hobart Hurricanes. "He will remain in Australia while the surgical wound heals further," Cricket Australia said. "He is planned to resume bowling this week with a view to joining the squad in Sri Lanka if he continues to progress well."

Aside from the Tests, the ODIs will offer a good opportunity for both sides to prepare ahead of the upcoming Champions Trophy. It was initially just one ODI, and an extra game was added on February 14 at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.

Australia Tour Of Sri Lanka 2025: Schedule

1st Test: January 29 to February 2 at the Galle International Stadium, Galle

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2nd Test: February 6 to February 10 at the Galle International Stadium, Galle

1st ODI: February 12 at the R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo

2nd ODI: February 14 at the R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo

In the first match,funph casino Haryana thrashed Rajasthan 6-1. Rohit Rana (2nd minute), Sunil Maan (11th), Sahil Ruhal (17th) and Ami Khasa (60th) scored one goal each, while Navraj Singh (7th, 37th) struck a brace for Haryana.

Australia Test Squad For Sri Lanka Tour

Steven Smith, Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Matt Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Nathan McSweeney, Todd Murphy, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster

Thoughts on Australia's squad for the two-Test tour of Sri Lanka? #SLvAUS pic.twitter.com/kjEBuBiciM

— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) January 9, 2025 Australia Tour Of Sri Lanka 2025: Telecast, Live Streaming Details

In Australiafc188, the tour will be broadcast on the Seven network and the 7plus app. The broadcast details are not yet available for India. This space will be updated as and when there is a development.