A wonderful captain's hundred from Michael Clarke ensured Australia would win the series 1-0 as they eliminated any chance of a Sri Lankan victory at the SSC in Colombo.
At tea on the final day, Australia were 429 for 5, with a 272-run lead, and with Michael Hussey at the crease on 80 alongside Brad Haddin on 19, a draw was the only possible result.The last remaining point of interest was whether Hussey, who will undoubtedly be named the Player of the Series, could cap off his remarkable tour with another century after making 118 in the first innings. It would be a first for Hussey, who despite his terrific career record, has never scored a hundred in each innings of a Test.
He had already rewritten the record books with a 176-run partnership with Clarke, Australia's highest for the fifth-wicket against Sri Lanka. It broke a 28-year-old mark set in the first Test match played between the two sides, when David Hookes and Allan Border added an unbeaten 155 in Kandy in 1983.
Between them, Clarke and Hussey eliminated any slight chance Sri Lanka had of pulling off the final-day victory they needed to level the series. It was an outstanding effort from Clarke, who entered this match - the last in his first series as Australia's full-time Test captain - with no hundreds to his name in 18 months.
He batted precisely the way a captain should in such circumstances, first and foremost guarding his wicket fiercely, but also ticking the scoreboard over to add to Sri Lanka's problems. At one point, he was 24 from 80 deliveries, but he lifted his rate as the day wore on, three times advancing down the pitch to Rangana Herath to drive him down the ground for six.
Although he survived a stumping chance when Prasanna Jayawardene failed to glove the ball cleanly, Clarke provided a masterclass in handling spin, using his feet and smothering the turn where he could. He brought up his century in exactly that manner, from his 139th ball, dancing down the pitch to clip Herath wide of mid-on for a boundary.
Eventually, Clarke fell for 112 driving a catch to mid-on from the bowling of Herath, following some banter between Clarke and Kumar Sangakkara, and the chirping continued as Clarke walked off the field. But the most important thing was that he had ensured a series triumph for his side.
The Clarke wicket was Herath's fifth of the innings, and had he had better support from the rest of the attack, Sri Lanka may have had some hope. Easily the leading wicket taker in the series, despite having missed the second Test due to injury, Herath had picked up the only wicket in the opening session when Phillip Hughes top-edged a sweep and was caught for 126.
Hughes had added only four to his overnight score, but like Clarke, he had made runs when they were most needed - for his own security in the team as well as the side's goal to draw the match. But nobody had done more for Australia in this series than Hussey, and another ton would be a fitting way for him to finish the trip.
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