Australia dominates day one as Sri Lanka crumbles to 229-9 in Galle

GALLE, Sri Lanka (AP) — Australia was firmly in control against Sri Lanka in the second test after reducing the host to 229-9 by stumps on day one Thursday.

Half-centuries from Dinesh Chandimal and Kusal Mendis kept Sri Lanka in the game, but their hopes of a big first-innings total after winning the toss did not materialize.

Australia bowled with discipline, sticking to its plans and backing it up with excellent fielding despite extreme heat and humidity.

Sri Lanka lost opener Pathum Nissanka early, but a 70-run stand for the second wicket between Dimuth Karunaratne and Chandimal steadied the innings.

Spinner Nathan Lyon broke through when Karunaratne was late in bringing his bat down and was bowled off an inside edge.

Sri Lanka slumped to 127-5 as the lower middle order struggled against disciplined bowling.

"We had a good start but then the afternoon session was poor,” Sri Lanka batting coadch Thilina Kandamby said. ” A few good knocks from Chandimal and Mendis but not what we wanted at the end of the day.

“In the afternoon session, our approach was too negative. There were too many dot balls and not much rotation of strike. We have given options for them to rotate the strike and do things differently but it keeps happening.”

Sri Lanka's approach was so careless that even part-time spinner Travis Head found himself among the wickets in his first over. Kamindu Mendis, attempting to cut a delivery too close to his body, was caught at slip by Steve Smith.

Chandimal was rarely troubled during his fighting 74, which included six boundaries and a six. However, Matthew Kuhnemann drew the in-form batter out of his crease and Alex Carey’s quick glovework stumped in a flash.

“I am very happy with Dinesh Chandimal,” Kandamby said. “His approach even at training was good. He took that challenge. He has taken that responsibility and done well for us. I feel he can score big hundreds for us. We have talked about the batting collapses.”

With the key threat dismissed, Australia looked to wrap things up quickly but Kusal Mendis resisted with an unbeaten 59.

A 65-run stand for the seventh wicket between Kusal and Ramesh Mendis prolonged Sri Lanka's innings, leaving Australia running out of ideas. At that point, Smith opted for the second new ball and Mitchell Starc soon had Ramesh caught behind to end the stubborn resistance. He made 28.

Starc removed Prabath Jayasuriya the very next ball, edging to the slips. Nishan Peiris survived the hat-trick ball but was soon cleaned up by Kuhnemann.

Starc finished with three wickets, as did Lyon, putting Australia on course for a 2-0 series win.

“We anticipated the wicket coming to the fore in terms of those footmarks, and breaking up and becoming quite dusty,” Australia spin coach Daniel Vettori said.

“Sri Lanka wanted to play an extended period of time. They were a lot more aggressive in the first test. Chandimal was very selective with his shots and played exceptionally well. And that partnership between the two Mendises at the end showed you can compete on this wicket, albeit that it's tricky. They showed the application that's probably required on this surface.”

Before play, Karunaratne was given a guard of honour by Australia as he walked out to bat. He became the seventh Sri Lankan to feature in 100 test matches. The former captain has announced he will retire after this test.

AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket

Sri Lanka's Dimuth Karunaratne who is playing his career last test match arrives to bat during the first day of the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle, Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Sri Lanka's Dinesh Chandimal celebrates his fifty runs during the first day of the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle, Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Sri Lanka's Kusal Mendis celebrates his fifty runs during the first day of the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle, Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Australia's Nathan Lyon bowls a delivery during the first day of the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle, Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Australia's Mitchell Starc celebrates the wicket of Sri Lanka's Dhananjaya de Silva with teammates during the first day of the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle, Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Sri Lanka's Dimuth Karunaratne plays a shot during the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle , Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Australia's Matthew Kuhnemann bowls a delivery during the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle , Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Sri Lanka's Dinesh Chandimal plays a shot during the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle , Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Australia's Nathan Lyon, centre, celebrates the wicket Sri Lanka's Pathum Nissanka with his team mates during the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle , Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Australia's Nathan Lyon bowls a delivery during the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle , Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Sri Lanka's Dinesh Chandimal , right, along with his batting partner Dimuth Karunaratne run between the wickets during the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle , Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Sri Lanka's Dimuth Karunaratne plays a shot during the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle , Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Sri Lanka's Dimuth Karunaratne plays a shot during the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle , Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Australia's Beau Webster bowls a delivery during the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle , Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Sri Lanka's Dimuth Karunaratne plays a shot during the second test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle , Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Lahiru Harshana)

Australia's Matthew Kuhnemann celebrates the wicket of Jeffrey Vandersay during day four of the first test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle , Sri Lanka, Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

Australia's Todd Murphy celebrates the wicket of Sri Lanka's Dimuth Karunaratne during day four of the first test cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Galle , Sri Lanka, Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington after his threat to strike the Islamic Republic over its bloody crackdown on protesters, a move coming as activists said Monday the death toll in the nationwide demonstrations rose to at least 544.

Iran had no immediate reaction to the news, which came after the foreign minister of Oman — long an interlocutor between Washington and Tehran — traveled to Iran this weekend. It also remains unclear just what Iran could promise, particularly as Trump has set strict demands over its nuclear program and its ballistic missile arsenal, which Tehran insists is crucial for its national defense.

Meanwhile Monday, Iran called for pro-government demonstrators to head to the streets in support of the theocracy, a show of force after days of protests directly challenging the rule of 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian state television aired chants from the crowd, who shouted “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!”

Trump and his national security team have been weighing a range of potential responses against Iran including cyberattacks and direct strikes by the U.S. or Israel, according to two people familiar with internal White House discussions who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

“The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday night. Asked about Iran’s threats of retaliation, he said: “If they do that, we will hit them at levels that they’ve never been hit before.”

Trump said that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports of the death toll in Iran mount and the government continues to arrest protesters.

“I think they’re tired of being beat up by the United States,” Trump said. “Iran wants to negotiate.”

He added: “The meeting is being set up, but we may have to act because of what’s happening before the meeting. But a meeting is being set up. Iran called, they want to negotiate.”

Iran through country's parliamentary speaker warned Sunday that the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if America uses force to protect demonstrators.

More than 10,600 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests, said the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate in previous unrest in recent years and gave the death toll. It relies on supporters in Iran crosschecking information. It said 496 of the dead were protesters and 48 were with security forces.

With the internet down in Iran and phone lines cut off, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll. Iran’s government has not offered overall casualty figures.

Those abroad fear the information blackout is emboldening hard-liners within Iran’s security services to launch a bloody crackdown. Protesters flooded the streets in the country’s capital and its second-largest city on Saturday night into Sunday morning. Online videos purported to show more demonstrations Sunday night into Monday, with a Tehran official acknowledging them in state media.

In Tehran, a witness told the AP that the streets of the capital empty at the sunset call to prayers each night. By the Isha, or nighttime prayer, the streets are deserted.

Part of that stems from the fear of getting caught in the crackdown. Police sent the public a text message that warned: “Given the presence of terrorist groups and armed individuals in some gatherings last night and their plans to cause death, and the firm decision to not tolerate any appeasement and to deal decisively with the rioters, families are strongly advised to take care of their youth and teenagers.”

Another text, which claimed to come from the intelligence arm of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, also directly warned people not to take part in demonstrations.

“Dear parents, in view of the enemy’s plan to increase the level of naked violence and the decision to kill people, ... refrain from being on the streets and gathering in places involved in violence, and inform your children about the consequences of cooperating with terrorist mercenaries, which is an example of treason against the country,” the text warned.

The witness spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing crackdown.

The demonstrations began Dec. 28 over the collapse of the Iranian rial currency, which trades at over 1.4 million to $1, as the country’s economy is squeezed by international sanctions in part levied over its nuclear program. The protests intensified and grew into calls directly challenging Iran’s theocracy.

Nikhinson reported from aboard Air Force One.

In this frame grab from video obtained by the AP outside Iran, a masked demonstrator holds a picture of Iran's Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi during a protest in Tehran, Iran, Friday, January. 9, 2026. (UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran shows protesters taking to the streets despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026.(UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran showed protesters once again taking to the streets of Tehran despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (UGC via AP)