McDonald feared for Kuhnemann’s Sri Lanka tour

Australian coach Andrew McDonald had lost faith in Matt Kuhnemann’s availability to tour Sri Lanka and had no idea who would replace him in the squad.

Then Kuhnemann recovered from thumb surgery in two weeks to take the best match figures of any bowler in his side’s triumphant first Test in Galle.

McDonald and the Australian selectors held their breath when the country’s premier left-arm offspinner wore a ball on his right hand playing Big Bash League in mid-January.

Surgery on a dislocated thumb rubbed Kuhnemann out of the squad’s training camp in Dubai, and left him in a race against the clock to line up in Sri Lanka.

“I thought he was gone,” said McDonald.

“But as it progressed and got closer to the Test match, he was pretty much a lock three days out.”

Left-arm off-spinners can have particular success in turning subcontinental conditions, especially in the face of right-handed batters.

But Australia’s replacement options for Kuhnemann had appeared limited.

Five-time Test player Ashton Agar no longer holds a state contract and allrounder Cooper Connolly is inexperienced at first-class level, but is touring Sri Lanka as a long-term prospect.

Australia also toyed with the idea of calling a leg-spinner into the squad, with Mitch Swepson playing both Tests on the 2022 Sri Lanka tour.

“I’m not sure where we would’ve ended up. It was a good thing he (Kuhnemann) got the all-clear to come over,” McDonald said.

“There were plenty of conversations around potentials: leg-spin, finger-spin, two off-spinners (and two pacemen), which we played in Nagpur before.

“So they were unfolding, but Matt solved the lot.”

In his first innings since a debut Test series in 2023, Kuhnemann took a five-wicket haul to help Australia skittle their hosts for 165 runs.

After Australia enforced the follow-on, Kuhnemann dismissed Sri Lanka’s best batter of 2024 Kamindu Mendis (34) and captain Dhananjaya de Silva (39), among four wickets.

He finished with match figures of 9-149 – the best of his four-match Test career – as Australia stormed home to win the series opener by an innings and 242 runs.

“He did a wonderful job when he got his opportunity in India and he bowled beautifully this game,” said stand-in captain Steve Smith.