Sri Lanka want maiden Test win Down-Under

Tourists take on Australia in opening match tomorrow in Hobart.

HOBART: Sri Lanka are putting their faith in the remnants of their ‘golden generation’ as they target their first Test win in Australia in the three-match series starting tomorrow.

Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, Tillakaratne Dilshan and Thilan Samaraweera, who form the core of Sri Lanka’s batting, are shaping as Sri Lanka’s best chance of breaking their 10-Test, 25-year winless record. Sangakkara, 35, will not be drawn on whether this will be his last trip to Australia, but he said an elusive Test win was a prime motivator for the team elders.

“When you do get older, you do look for achievements where you haven’t really tasted victory so, here and in India, there are Test matches still to win and we look forward to doing so,” said Sangakkara.

Since being hammered in their first Test in Australia in early 1988, Sri Lanka have lost another seven matches and drawn two, most recently in Cairns in 2004.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 13^th, 2012.