Roaring Lyon up for the fight

Nathan Lyon is up for the fight after Sri Lanka staged a stunning fightback on the opening day of the third Test at the SSC Ground in Colombo.

Lyon combined with pace spearhead Mitchell Starc to reduce the hosts to 5-26 in a remarkable 80-minute blitz that very nearly became 6-35 a short time later, before a wise review from Dhananjaya de Silva overturned the original decision of a catch in close.

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Dhananjaya and Dinesh Chandimal weathered the storm and cooked the tourists in the scorching afternoon heat to then be cheered off the field by a raucous home crowd and an upbeat papare band at stumps.

The pair will resume their 188-run stand this morning with the hosts 5-214; a stunning turnaround given they were on track to beat their lowest Test total of 71 against Pakistan nearly 22 years ago.

While the Australians couldn’t maintain their day-one dominance over the Sri Lankans, Lyon doesn’t believe they let the Test slip from their grasp.

"I'd say that's a solid day of Test match cricket and that's how Test match cricket should be played," Lyon told media after play.

"We were lucky enough to take five early wickets, but you've got to give credit to the two guys batting.

"They were outstanding and they're in a good partnership, so we have to come back tomorrow and start the grind again.

"The game's not out of our depth that's for sure.

"If you go anywhere else in the world and say 'at stumps 5-210 after them winning the toss and batting first', it's a big tick.

"We're in a fight and that's the best thing about it. We're in a grind.

"To be honest, I was pretty proud of all our bowlers out there today.

"That was hot. That was real hot."

Lyon finished the day with 2-72 from 34 probing overs after being introduced in the sixth over of the Test match on a dry SSC pitch.

While the off-spinner expressed concern about the state of a hole that had developed on the bowling crease at one end, Lyon didn’t believe the playing strip offered up too many dilemmas on the game’s opening day.

"The pitch is playing OK,” Lyon said.

"There seems to be no real demons at this stage.

"It's going to be a tough challenge. First-innings runs are going to be crucial for us.

"As a bowling group, we have to come back tomorrow, start our grind again and play a hard Test match again."

Lyon was full of praise for spin twin Jon Holland after the left-arm finger spinner bowled without luck in sending down 21 wicketless overs featuring a number of close calls and missed chances.

Holland has claimed just two wickets in his 46 overs of Test cricket so far, but Lyon is confident a breakthrough bag is just around the corner.

"I think Dutch has been brilliant to be honest,” Australia’s most experienced Test player said.

"To be thrown into the Test squad and the way he's gone about it has been outstanding.

"He bowled out there without luck, but I've got confidence in Jon that it will turn around for him.

"Hopefully in the back-end of this innings and into the second innings he'll get his chance to take a bag."