Dimuth Karunaratne hits 122 as Sri Lanka wrap up record chase in Galle
Sri Lanka's new captain preserved his perfect record after taking over as Sri Lanka won their third consecutive Test under his leadership to go 1-0 up in the two-match series
Sri Lanka's new captain preserved his perfect record after taking over as Sri Lanka won their third consecutive Test under his leadership to go 1-0 up in the two-match series
Scorer: Ranjith P | Commentator: Sreshth Shah (@sreshthx)
And that's all from us today. Keep an eye on the ESPNcricinfo homepage to read the match report from Varun Shetty and all the analysis that comes from Andrew Fidel Fernando in Galle. Till then, on behalf of everyone here, it's goodbye!
12.41pm Time for the post-match presentation.
Dimuth Karunaratne is the Man of the Match for his hundred.
Losing captain Kane Williamson: "When we won the toss, we would've taken 268 as the fourth-innings target. We saw the surface deteriorate in the past, but it wasn't this time. It just slowed down. A good surface. Number of learnings that we can take out of this game. We weren't far off, but SL's knowledge and experience in these conditions was very good. We played reasonably well, but not good enough. We need better partnerships with the bat and the ball. The rankings and the points are secondary. The quality of cricket is the focus for us. Certainly some good bits, but as a side this wasn't our best performance. Having said that, SL played really well."
Winning captain Dimuth Karunaratne: "It's not easy chasing in the fourth innings. We needed a good partnership, and that's what Thirimanne and I discussed. On the fifth day, we started well and wanted to keep at it. Once you're set, you have to make a big one. We are thinking of keeping the basics right for the next Test too. After losing the toss, our bowlers did a great job to keep them under 300. When the ball gets softer it's easier at Galle. We saw Taylor and Watling bat well, so we thought the pitch isn't so dangerous and we adapted accordingly."
12.33pm Stick around for the presentation.
Prabhanjan Bada: "Bon appetit to followers of Test cricket this Sunday as Lord's could offer more savouries if Australia nip a few English wickets in a hurry. "
vip wick: "Both world cup finalists lost their first matches in WTC!"
12.26pm And that's sixty points on the WTC table for Sri Lanka. The teams shake hands as the Sri Lanka players hug each other in the dugout. The camera is focused on Dimuth Karunaratne, whose rare fourth-innings ton broke New Zealand's back yesterday and today.
kieran: "Well done SL on the win. Some in close catching practice needed by NZ! Hopefully Kane will score big next game. I haven't had the pleasure of watching a test in SL before, I must say Galle looks like a very nice spot."
Ruminda: "To kane and the wonderful kiwis.really sorry.but we as a country needed this much more than you could ever imagine."
suneej: "After long time we will see sri Lanka at the top of the table#WTC"
Glen: "Glad to see the umpires using a bit of common sense and letting the match finish, rather than taking lunch with a handful of runs needed because the rulebook says too. Hope it doesn't result in them being punished in some way or anything stupid like that. "
Time for the second *extra* over of the session
Chants of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka begin to engulf the ground. A big crowd has turned up today
Prabhanjan Bada: "After having watched proceedings from the Ashes and this series in Sri Lanka, one feels the WTC couldn't have hoped for a better start. Whether the heightened verve in the contests is a consequence of the new league or merely incidental is up for debate. "
Roshan: "It is not Sri Lanka's fault they are not given many matches from others. So what some of you are suggesting is for sides like Pak and Srl that play 13 matches get same number of points as sides that play 20+ matches. That is ridiculous. Why don't you all give credit where credit is due. This was a tough chase on a ground where no one has chased above 100 before! Also nobody calls home advantage when Nzl beat Srl in Green tops! Then it was sub continent teams lack of ability! Hypocritical much "
From the national coaches' unending job insecurity to a bloated domestic competition, there's a lot that's not right with Sri Lankan cricket. When will this change?
The opener said it was important to him that he brought up the match-winning hundred, having not been able to convert his half-centuries since last July
Stats highlights from an outstanding run-chase in Galle
Having said that, though, the New Zealand captain gave credit to Dimuth Karunaratne for a 'fantastic hundred' in the fourth innings
Sri Lanka's new captain preserved his perfect record after taking over as Sri Lanka won their third consecutive Test under his leadership to go 1-0 up in the two-match series