Player of the Match
Player of the Match
  • BATSMEN
    R
    B
    M
    4s
    6s
    SR
    1.6 gone! Plays all around a length delivery that pitched on middle and off, looking to play cross-batted through midwicket but got his front foot right across. Dead duck the moment he missed it, the late inswing doing the trick. Gunathilaka is told by his partner in no uncertain terms to not review that. Good decision too. 5/1
    46.3 the 133-run stand has been broken! big wicket against the run of play and it's the short-ball tactic that has played mind games on Karunaratne. Looks to be ultra-aggressive, wants to take him on with the pull even though there were two fielders set for the pull, he manages to simply glove this through to Watling down the leg side. Huge wicket, huge moment in the game. It's that war horse who has delivered a timely breakthrough for New Zealand. 142/4
    3.2 squared up by late away movement and he gets a thin edge through to BJ Watling. Feet rooted to the crease as he feels for the ball that moves away in the air, at the point of contact, his right shoulder is visible, a great sign of him being in no control over the stroke, and the nick gleefully accepted. Southee on fire already. 7/2
    3.6 flicks this straight to short midwicket. What is happening! Ajaz takes a dolly. Southee went from wide of the crease to angle a full ball on middle, he looked to flick but only got it off the bottom to loop the simplest of catches. 9/3
    59.3 huge wicket and it's the well-set Mathews who has now been undone by the short ball. This is cleverly angled away from round the stumps in such a way that Mathews is cramped for room as he looks to take on the short ball, in the process can only glove this to Watling who leaps high to grab this. They're falling apart quite spectacularly here to a plan that New Zealand have not tried to hide 187/6
    57.2 he's fallen to the short-ball plan. Hit straight down the throat of Ajaz Patel at deep square leg. Very poor from Sri Lanka's captain. Lack of fight against New Zealand's tried and tested plan. 167/5
    not out
    80
    101
    154
    11
    0
    79.20
    69.5 very loose. Full and straight, flashes at it and gets a clear nick for his troubles as the ball settles into the gloves of Watling 223/7
    74.2 outstanding from Henry Nicholls! What anticipation. Lakmal runs out of patience as he looks to pull a short ball angling away, but something stops him from doing so fully. But by then its too late so the ball lobs into the leg side. Now, Nicholls starts to take off from short leg as he turns back, but isn't helped by the fact that he is looking upwards to track the trajectory with the helmet on his head. So he now trusts his agility and speed to get him close to the ball. He sprints, gets close to the ball and as it comes down, he puts out a full-length dive to reach it. As he completed the catch, he also ensured the impact of his elbows of the turf wouldn't allow the ball to bobble out. Stunning catch 240/8
    86.6 ah, he didn't want to face another ball. Tell you what.. he couldn't if he wanted to now. Because he's nicked off. Boult switches to around the wicket and Rajitha pushes at one that he could have left alone. But that's what the around the wicket angle does to you. Because it's attacking the off-stump, you instinctively play at most deliveries coming your way 275/9
    89.6 snaffled at leg gully! Stunning catch, Southee finishes with six. It's the big inswing that has felled Kumara, who has no clue and wafts at the delivery. Plays down the wrong line, so it takes a thick inside edge and flies between his legs. So de Grandhomme at leg gully wouldn't have seen it for a split-second. He anticipated the movement nice and early, dived low to his left to pluck this. Super stuff. 282/10
    Extras
    9 (lb 7, nb 2)
    TOTAL
    282 all out (90 Overs, RR: 3.13, 401 minutes)
    Fall of wickets: 1-5 (Danushka Gunathilaka, 1.6 ov), 2-7 (Dhananjaya de Silva, 3.2 ov), 3-9 (Kusal Mendis, 3.6 ov), 4-142 (Dimuth Karunaratne, 46.3 ov), 5-167 (Dinesh Chandimal, 57.2 ov), 6-187 (Angelo Mathews, 59.3 ov), 7-223 (Dilruwan Perera, 69.5 ov), 8-240 (Suranga Lakmal, 74.2 ov), 9-275 (Kasun Rajitha, 86.6 ov), 10-282 (Lahiru Kumara, 89.6 ov)
    BowlingOMRWEconWDNB
    TA Boult2768313.0700
    TG Southee2776862.5100
    C de Grandhomme1323512.6901
    N Wagner2027523.7501
    AY Patel301404.6600
  • BATSMEN
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    4s
    6s
    SR
    22.6 is that gone? Yes, he is! Oh, dear! Raval with a brain fade. Gifts his wicket away off the last ball before lunch. All the good work over the session undone. Short ball does the trick. Raval compulsively pulls but is tucked up and sends an edge through to the keeper. Swings without control and pays for it with his wicket 59/1
    not out
    264
    489
    694
    21
    1
    53.98
    59.3 would you believe what has just happened? Williamson fails to keep this sweep down and has toe-ended this straight to backward square leg. Williamson will be livid with himself, a century was there for the taking and he's just missed out bigtime. 221/2
    84.4 full again, on middle stump, and Dimuth Karunaratne has taken the catch of the decade! Only a slight exaggeration, really. A firm flick from Taylor, off the middle of the bat, towards the left shoulder of the forward short leg fielder, and he gets his hands up incredibly quickly and manages to hold on on the second attempt despite the impact causing him to fall backwards and causing the ball to bounce out of his hands. Terrific reflex catch 312/3
    122.5 there's the breakthrough, finally. Jumps out of his crease to this nicely flighted ball, and I think he's been done in by the drift here. He was looking to hit it back over the bowler's head, but the ball drifted inwards, pitched on a line closer to him than he expected, forcing him to hit it a little further into the on side, off the inside half of the bat, and long-on takes a smart catch running to his right 426/4
    123.6 ooh, is that off the bat or the helmet? Bat is the umpire's decision, and Watling isn't arguing. That's a nasty bouncer, keeps coming in with the angle, and you'll have to say Watling dealt poorly with that, taking his eyes off the ball and turning his head away as he ducked, while leaving his bat up like a periscope. The ball hit the back of the bat and popped up in the air to offer Dickwella the simplest of catches 426/5
    138.6 holes out to deep midwicket! Comes down the ground and uses his powerful wrists to whip it away off the pads. Just doesn't manage as much power this time, gets just about enough elevation and distance to carry and settle into the hands of Rajitha diving forward 499/6
    144.6 has there been a run out here? Oh yeah, comfortably gone. Perera pushes this one further across off, Southee pushes it towards mid-off and takes off for a single. Took a chance there and he has been felled by a direct hit 520/7
    145.6 the short-ball tactic has worked. Awkward bouncer, rising towards Wagner's front shoulder, and he tries to fend it away into the leg side. Only manages to pop it up in an unintended direction, off glove - I think - and it balloons into the hands of the fielder at wide slip 520/8
    6
    21
    43
    0
    0
    28.57
    154.5 gets down for a big wild slog but this one's flat, curves in and pretty much goes on with the arm to not afford him the room. Not much bounce as well and he gets cleaned up 549/9
    157.3 short ball, backs away and swats at it looking for a pull. He's not holding any sort of shape as he almost falls over attempting the shot. Gets a top edge that is snaffled by the keeper 578/10
    Extras
    8 (lb 5, nb 2, w 1)
    TOTAL
    578 all out (157.3 Overs, RR: 3.66, 694 minutes)
    Fall of wickets: 1-59 (Jeet Raval, 22.6 ov), 2-221 (Kane Williamson, 59.3 ov), 3-312 (Ross Taylor, 84.4 ov), 4-426 (Henry Nicholls, 122.5 ov), 5-426 (BJ Watling, 123.6 ov), 6-499 (Colin de Grandhomme, 138.6 ov), 7-520 (Tim Southee, 144.6 ov), 8-520 (Neil Wagner, 145.6 ov), 9-549 (Ajaz Patel, 154.5 ov), 10-578 (Trent Boult, 157.3 ov)
    BowlingOMRWEconWDNB
    RAS Lakmal3168812.8301
    CAK Rajitha34514404.2311
    AD Mathews43100.2500
    MDK Perera40115623.9000
    CBRLS Kumara31.3212744.0300
    DM de Silva1505423.6000
    MD Gunathilaka21301.5000
  • BATSMEN
    R
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    M
    4s
    6s
    SR
    3.3 umpire Tucker grants Boult an lbw appeal but Gunathilaka reviews. Full and angling in, going past the closed face of the bat. No inside edge, so we wait for ball-tracking. It straightens just before hitting the pads and that means it's smashing into middle. Review lost 5/1
    6.2 that's a horrible shot to play. Short, that was always the plan. Karunaratne needlessly swings at it, looking for an ambitious pull. Trying to hit his way out perhaps. Top-edged to deep backward square. The best day for batting and SL have lost three in six overs 13/3
    4.5 straight through. Cross-seamer, lands on a length and moves in to go past the inside edge as de Silva prods forward and takes out his stumps. SL in deep trouble 10/2
    not out
    141
    335
    455
    16
    0
    42.08
    not out
    120
    323
    447
    11
    0
    37.15
    Extras
    13 (lb 2, nb 3, w 8)
    TOTAL
    287/3 (115 Overs, RR: 2.49, 479 minutes)
    Fall of wickets: 1-5 (Danushka Gunathilaka, 3.3 ov), 2-10 (Dhananjaya de Silva, 4.5 ov), 3-13 (Dimuth Karunaratne, 6.2 ov)
    BowlingOMRWEconWDNB
    TG Southee2585222.0800
    TA Boult2546212.4800
    N Wagner23410004.3442
    C de Grandhomme1342401.8401
    AY Patel28104601.6400
    JA Raval10101.0000

Close of Play

  • Sat, 15 Dec - day 1 - Sri Lanka 1st innings 275/9 (N Dickwella 73*, 87 ov)
  • Sun, 16 Dec - day 2 - New Zealand 1st innings 311/2 (TWM Latham 121*, LRPL Taylor 50*, 84 ov)
  • Mon, 17 Dec - day 3 - Sri Lanka 2nd innings 20/3 (BKG Mendis 5*, AD Mathews 2*, 12 ov)
  • Tue, 18 Dec - day 4 - Sri Lanka 2nd innings 259/3 (BKG Mendis 116*, AD Mathews 117*, 102 ov)
  • Wed, 19 Dec - day 5 - Sri Lanka 2nd innings 287/3 (115 ov) - end of match

Match Notes

Sri Lanka 3rd innings Partnerships

WktRunsPlayers
1st5FDM KarunaratneMD Gunathilaka
2nd5FDM KarunaratneDM de Silva
3rd3FDM KarunaratneBKG Mendis
4th274AD MathewsBKG Mendis