Travis Head locked in to open alongside Usman Khawaja for Australia in first Test against Sri Lanka at Galle

Speculation has been rife Head would replace teenage rookie Sam Konstas at the top of the order after the former impressed when filling in for injured opener David Warner

Australia will finalise their playing XI for the first Test against Sri Lanka at Galle on the morning of the match, with Travis Head set to open the batting.

Head is likely to replace teenage batter Sam Konstas at the top of the order, having impressed when filling in for injured opener David Warner in the final two Tests of Australia's recent subcontinent sojourn to India in 2023.

The move has been on the cards since Australia arrived in Sri Lanka, with Head slotting into the opening role during training sessions at both Galle and the preceding training camp in Dubai.

While Head's elevation appears set in stone, Australia's skipper Steve Smith has confirmed that few other radical changes are expected for the two-Test series.

"Trav will go to the top, outside of that I think it will be pretty stable," Smith told reporters prior to Australia's final pre-Test training session.

"I don't see it being a great deal of change from that. The selectors liked what they saw in India when he (Head) had that opportunity.

"He got after the new ball, scored quickly and put the pressure on them straight away so I guess similar thinking here."

Konstas blazed onto the Test stage with an audacious half-century against India on Boxing Day, and while he could still be re-cast as a middle-order batter for the Sri Lanka Tests, Smith said the 19-year-old will gain invaluable experience on the tour regardless.

Konstas has shown a markedly different temperament in the practice nets both at Galle and during the preceding training camp at Dubai, with studied defence and textbook drives replacing the reverse ramps and scoop shots he unfurled against India's quicks.

"He's going to have a lot of practice if he doesn't play, which in itself is great for development," Smith said of Konstas.

"I only have to think back to 2013 (in India) where I didn't play the first two Tests, and just the amount of balls I was hitting in the nets and the skills I was able to develop from facing loads of net bowlers and things like that.

"So whether he plays or not, I think it's going to be a wonderful experience for him. He's going to learn a lot."

Should Konstas be overlooked for a middle-order berth, uncapped keeper-batter Josh Inglis looms as a potential replacement for his Test debut.

Nathan McSweeney, who endured a tough start to his Test career as an opener during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy campaign and lost his place after three matches, is the other auxiliary batter in the squad and offers some handy off-spin bowling as well.

Smith has recovered better than expected from the elbow injury he sustained while fielding in the BBL earlier this month, and is batting without needing tape applied to his damaged arm - though he admits he won't be able to throw when in the field.

And left-arm spinner Matthew Kuhnemann seems certain to come under consideration for a Test recall for the first time since the 2023 India tour despite fracturing his right thumb, also while playing for his BBL team a fortnight ago.

"Apparently the surgeon's done an incredible job for him to be able to field and do some of the things he (Kuhnemann) has been able to do the last couple of days, we're a bit gobsmacked," Smith said.