From smacking runs to nipping out wickets with crafty medium pace to latching onto catches with bucket hands, Beau Webster has done plenty already in his fledgling Test career.
And the Tasmanian cult hero was able to show off another string to his bow on the third evening of the second Test – off-spin.
A long-term part-time ‘offie’ in the Tigers’ Sheffield Shield team, Webster switched to bowling seam up for the 2020/21 season, improving so rapidly that his Test debut against India in Sydney was as much for his qualities as a fifth bowler as it was his swathe of runs in the competition over the last few seasons.
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But with Sri Lanka holding out late in the day to keep hopes of an unlikely victory alive, Australian captain Steve Smith turned to Webster to replace Matt Kuhnemann at the end of a spell, with the instruction to send down his off-spin.
Remarkably, the 30-year old would strike almost immediately, sparking scenes of delirium among the visitors off his fifth ball when a well-flighted off-break found the inside edge of Ramesh Mendis’ bat to present a low catch to Travis Head at short leg.
“What a masterstroke again from the skipper, Steve Smith!” former Test star Simon Katich said on Seven.
“Webster, just with the extra bounce and the height, it just grabs in the surface. [Mendis] just pushes at it, and Travis Head does the rest.
“Beau Webster loves it! He’s made a habit of this in Sheffield Shield cricket for Tassie, and now he’s done it for Australia.”
Webster was quickly mobbed by delighted teammates, Marnus Labuschagne the most thrilled of all, as they celebrated just his second Test wicket.
He would be given just two overs before Smith again turned to Kuhnemann for the final over of the day – a decision vindicated by the immediate wicket of Prabath Jayasuriya – but Webster’s mix of accuracy, bounce and considerable spin was enough to impress Sri Lankan commentary doyen Roshan Abeysinghe.
“He’s getting turn, and he’s dropping in a very nice area, just outside the off stump,” Abeysinghe said on the broadcast.
“Really beautiful off-spinner’s action… getting a lot of turn from outside the off stump.
“With his height, the extra bit of bounce as well.”
Having earlier taken a superb outfield catch to remove Sri Lankan half-centurion Angelo Mathews, Webster’s day was completed with a sprint down the ground to the long off boundary to turn a four into a three… off his own bowling.
A slice of history
Alex Carey carved out a slice of history for himself in Australia’s pantheon of great wicketkeepers, becoming the first Aussie gloveman to score more than 150 in an innings in Test cricket in Asia.
Despite losing a few early wickets early on day three – including Steve Smith for 131 and Josh Inglis for a second ball duck, the Aussies have continued to score at a breakneck pace in Galle, pushing their lead over Sri Lanka into triple figures with over an hour remaining until the lunch break.
Carey fell shortly afterwards, finishing with a brand new career-best knock of 156. His score beat the previous record of 144 set by Adam Gilchrist in March 2004 – which was also against Sri Lanka in Kandy.
The second coming of Smith?
Steve Smith has barely put a foot wrong since his drought-breaking century in the Boxing Day Test match, backing it up with back-to-back hundreds in Galle as Australians pile on the runs in their first innings against Sri Lanka.
Despite falling early on day three, Smith’s 131, as part of a 259-run partnership with Alex Carey, has wrestled the match back for the visitors. Speaking on Fox Cricket, Indian broadcaster Harsha Bhogle believes that Smith could cash in big in 2025 – particularly with the upcoming fixtures ahead for the year.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if he now gets into a rich vein of form,” said Bhogle.
“He’s going to Sri Lanka now…if Australia continues playing like this, he is going to score a lot of runs.
“He might have some time off in the summer after that. Then he preps and goes and plays a Test match in England. And then he’s going to the West Indies.
“He is going to score a lot of runs. He could have a blockbuster 2025.”
Scoring 141 in the first Test, Smith’s form was also commended by former cricketers Simon Katich and Greg Blewett – who singled out his form against the spin as promising signs for a big year.
“He knows what he is doing in these conditions and he is at the peak of his powers. He has a wealth of knowledge,” Katich said on the Seven Cricket broadcast.
“It is great to see a champion of the game get back into tip-top form. He is back to the Steven Smith of old. I am just rapt he is making runs again,” Blewett added.
“There was a period of time there where he was really struggling and … it is very pleasing to see (him back) and he is always hungry for runs.”
Carey confident he can ‘co-exist’ with Inglis
Josh Inglis may have fallen for a duck in the second Test, but after a stellar opening Test performance, the national selectors may have a new conundrum on their hands.
Despite the dominance of the Australian side in Galle, the Australian side pose many headscratchers when it comes to the make-up of the side. Marnus Labuschange continues to misfire, and Travis Head has made it clear he does not plan to have a lengthy stay as an opener.
Then, of course, there is the inevitable return of Cameron Green hanging in the background.
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However, a new issue has emerged in the form of whether Australia will revert to having two wicketkeeper batters in the side – with Josh Inglis and Carey putting forward a compelling case for their positions, the former scoring 102 in the first Test and Carey leading the charge alongside Smith in the second Test.
While having two wicketkeeper-batters is not unusual in the Australian set-up (with Matthew Wade playing alongside Carey for several years), whether the side wants to return to that set-up does open up more questions as to the makeup of the middle-order – especially with Head indicating he wishes to return down the order.
Add in June’s World Test Championship Final on the horizon, it is a question the selectors will have to address sooner rather than later – but speaking following his unbroken 239-run stand with Smith on Day 2, Carey believes there is a spot for Inglis in the side.
“He’s (Inglis) playing really well. He’s a great batsman,” Carey said.
“I feel like if I can continue to improve as well and play as long as possible, and we’ve done it in white ball cricket as well, I think we can certainly co-exist.
“We both know our roles in the team and trying to play them both as best we can.”
Josh Inglis celebrates with Alex Carey in Galle, Sri Lanka. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)
While Inglis would likely fit in well as a specialist batter, Carey would likely stop short of his counterpart replacing him as the side’s gloveman, with Smith backing up the incumbent keeper to keep his position for the WTC Final.
“As far as I’m concerned, it’s his job,” said Smith clarified ahead of the second Test.
“From my point of view, I think he’s keeping as well as I’ve ever seen him keep.
“He’s batting beautifully too.”