Title : The Spoon remains Sri Lanka's kryptonite as Australia seizes control in Canberra
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The Spoon remains Sri Lanka's kryptonite as Australia seizes control in Canberra
What a wonderfully wholesome moment it was.
Kurtis Patterson, grinning from ear to ear but forgoing any major theatrics, after bringing up his first Test ton in just his second Test match with a firm drive through the covers.
His sweater kept out the cold, his headband the sweat and hair as he celebrated an innings that, like his choice of attire, was always more function than form.
Mum and dad were in the stands, tearing their hair out until the final three runs were ticked off. Dad said he would commemorate the occasion with "about 1,000 beers", all of which he would have earned from the countless training drop-offs and throw downs over the years.
Kurtis's mates were all there too, just as they were in Brisbane for his debut. They cheered every run, none more so than the 100th, and were quickly over to congratulate the parents for their part of the journey too.
The Spoon — unquestionably one of the best new entries in the long list of Australian Test players' nicknames — had a Test hundred, and it felt like everyone at Manuka Oval was there just for him.
It's been a hell of a fortnight for Patterson. Stranded on the outer when the squad for this series was announced, he forced his way into the reckoning in the pre-series trial match against Sri Lanka and has seized his surprise opportunity since.
He cuts a bit of a strange figure at the crease, tall and trim with more of a fast bowler's frame. Perhaps that partially explains why it's taken him this long to be given an international chance — he certainly falls a little short of a Mitch Marsh or Marcus Stoinis in the rig stakes.
But he's proven to be a pure timer of the ball, and in this innings in Canberra demonstrated just the right balance between restraint and aggression.
Like Joe Burns and Travis Head before him, Patterson left the ball well, a distinction that has basically proven to be the difference between a successful innings and a poor one so far in this match.
On Twitter, Michael Vaughan drew comparisons in style to Alastair Cook, though his footwork is a little less precise than the former England captain. Kerry O'Keefe namechecked Matthew Elliott, which is probably an even more accurate likeness.
Either way, the praise was high. Any deficiency with the feet was comfortably compensated for by his excellent hands, as he peppered the point boundary off both the back and front foot.
For some reason, the Sri Lankans thought they might be able to bounce him out, a plan that was brought undone by Patterson's obvious skill on the hook.
What is clear now though is that Sri Lanka has a serious problem in trying to dismiss him. Patterson has played four innings against the tourists across three matches, one of them a practice game, for scores of 157*, 102*, 30 and 114*. The lanky lefty is in some form, and it's Sri Lanka copping the brunt of it.
His innings was ended not by a rival bowler but his selfless captain, who must surely have looked across at his weary opponents, down at the flat track, then up to the scoreboard and entertained ambitions of a maiden century of his own.
Tim Paine's aggressive declaration was admirable, but didn't exactly produce the desire results. At least not immediately.
Unlike Sri Lanka's new ball brigade, Australia extracted no swing from the shiny Kookaburra and no deviation from the Canberra highway. And unlike Australia's top order, Sri Lanka was in no mood to offer up cheap wickets.
Mitchell Starc's first two overs came at the cost of 18 runs, forcing Jhye Richardson to try to stem the bleeding with a constant fifth-stump line. Neither threatened openers Dimuth Karunaratne and Lahiru Thirimanne, who seldom looked concerned by the Aussie offering.
Only Nathan Lyon could generate any excitement, spinning the ball profusely but still unable to hone consistently on a truly probing length. Behind the stumps, Paine kept assuring his bowler the breakthrough was right around the corner, but even he probably knew he was stretching the truth a little.
And then, out of nowhere, the afternoon was changed by a searing Pat Cummins bouncer that clipped Karunaratne's shoulder and whacked into the side of his neck.
The sight of him laid out on the turf, surrounded by concerned medics, was deeply uncomfortable, even more so for those players with vivid memories of that horrible 2014 day at the SCG.
With Karunaratne sent to hospital, mercifully conscious and responding, Sri Lanka's resistance began to wilt. Thirimanne, Kusal Mendis and Dinesh Chandimal fell quickly and the complexion of the game changed. Australia's position of authority is now significant.
It was a day that has likely taken the second Test away from Sri Lanka, and has produced enough subplots to keep cricket fans engaged in a Test and series that has struggled to capture too many imaginations.
But most of all, day two in Canberra will be remembered for the deeds of one man. And they call that man the Spoon.
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