Nishan peris

Galle International Stadium: Australian batting stalwart Steve Smith registered his 36th Test century on day 2 of the second Test against Sri Lanka at the Galle International Stadium on Friday. With this century, Smith has now equalled the legendary Rahul Dravid and England’s Joe Root in the list of most Test centuries, making him the joint-fifth highest century-maker in Test history.

Smith, leading Australia in the absence of Pat Cummins, played a captain’s knock, anchoring the innings after the visitors suffered early blows. Walking in at 37/2, following the dismissals of Travis Head (21) and Marnus Labuschagne (4), Smith faced immediate pressure but remained unfazed. He survived a close lbw appeal on the first ball, as the Sri Lankan review revealed the ball was missing the stumps.

Once he got off the mark on his sixth delivery, Smith quickly found his rhythm, dispatching Parabath Jayasuriya for a boundary through mid-wicket. He went into lunch on 23 and built a crucial 54-run stand with Usman Khawaja (36) before the latter fell right at the start of the second session to Nishan Peris.