On the eve of the fixture, Mahela Jayawardene was asked to recall the biggest Test crowd his side had ever played for. “Lord’s,” he offered, “and maybe Mumbai and Madras. Tomorrow might be a special day.” None of those stadia can even seat the number that stepped through turnstiles on Boxing Day in Melbourne. In Sri Lanka’s 30-year Test history, they have never had a greater crowd than the 67,138 that saw them stripped of their fight and bullied out of their senses at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
