Adam Voges sets sights on

Australian batsman Adam Voges who was injured while captaining English county side Middlesex compiled a strong county season of 388 runs at 77 before returning home to prepare for the tour of Sri Lanka against a new-look Test side rebuilding after the retirements of batting stars Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene. The tour features three Tests – in picturesque Kandy, Galle and Colombo – five one-day internationals and two Twenty20 internationals.

Four tourists – Joe Burns, Peter Neville, Steve O'Keefe and Jackson Bird – left on Saturday for pre-tour training in India, and will link with the rest of their teammates in Sri Lanka next weekend.

The first Test, beginning July 26, falls just before the Olympics but the remaining part of the series won't enjoy the same prominence. That, though, will matter little for the players, who hope to replicate Australia's 1-0 series win under Michael Clarke in Sri Lanka of 2011. That is Australia's only victory in their past five series on the sub-continent, where they have won only one of 15 Tests against the turning ball.

A dry English summer and the new no-toss rule have meant conditions in county cricket have encouraged greater reverse swing and spin – something the tourists will encounter in Sri Lanka. Voges said he had welcomed the unexpected English conditions.

"It has been great in terms of preparation for what is coming up. It has worked out really well," he said.

It's been a remarkable year for the West Australian, who last year became the oldest man to score a ton on Test debut, in Dominica against the West Indies. He held his spot through a rugged Ashes tour, then had 285 runs at 71.25 at home against New Zealand and was not dismissed in compiling 375 runs – including an undefeated 269 in Hobart – against the West Indies. A strong tour of New Zealand followed, leaving him with an average of 95.5 after 15 Tests.

Did someone mention Bradman? "Nah, only if they are trying to wind me up," Voges quipped. First Test, Kandy Second Test, Galle Third Test, Colombo First ODI, Colombo Second ODI, Colombo Third ODI, Dambulla Fourth ODI, Dambulla Fifth ODI, Kandy First T20I, Kandy Second T20I, Colombo