Sri Lanka 198-4 at tea against New Zealand
Sri Lanka reached 198-4 at tea on first day of the second Test against New Zealand
HAMILTON (AFP) - Sri Lanka reached 198-4 on a finely balanced first day of the second Test against New Zealand after being put in to bat on a green wicket in Hamilton on Friday.
The tourists lost openers Dimuth Karunaratne and Kusal Mendis in the morning session before a 71-run stand for the third wicket upped the tempo in their favour.
The fall of Udara Jayasundera and Dinesh Chandimal in quick succession after lunch changed the momentum but Sri Lanka made it to tea without further loss.
Captain Angelo Mathews was not out 44 at tea with Milinda Siriwardene, in his fourth Test, on 26.
Mathews resumed his personal battle with New Zealand seamer Neil Wagner on the fall of Jayasundera s wicket and this time it was Mathews who had the upper hand.
In the first Test, Wagner s second-innings dismissal of the Sri Lankan captain sparked New Zealand s final push for their 122-run victory.
But in the bright Hamilton sunshine, Mathews was more comfortable against Wagner s short-ball attack, hitting 20 off 17 deliveries from the left-armer including the first six of the Test.
Siriwardene also clipped Wagner for six with a top edge to bring up Sri Lanka s 150.
Of the two wickets to fall between lunch and tea, Jayasundera (26) was first to go when he paid the price for being too keen to push the score along.
Chandimal called for a run after driving Southee through cover-point and Jayasundera, without looking at the field, turned for two.
He was sent back by Chandimal but not quick enough to beat Mitchell Santner s throw to wicketkeeper BJ Watling, who whipped the bails off.
Chandimal added six to his lunchbreak tally to reach 47 when Doug Bracewell had him caught behind.
The tourists had the run rate up to 3.85 at lunch largely due to Chandimal cruising along at a run-a-ball pace, but by tea it had dipped to 3.67.
New Zealand, although they slowed the scoring rate, would still not be happy with a poor return of only four wickets in two sessions of toil on a green wicket.
The ball did not produce the expected movement in the air, the bowlers did not help themselves with an inconsistent line and length and opener Mendis was dropped at first slip on the second ball he faced.
Mendis had another life when a Doug Bracewell seamer clipped the bails but did not dislodge them.
It took an hour for New Zealand to claim their first wicket when Tim Southee found the inside edge of Karunaratne s bat to send a regulation catch to wicketkeeper BJ Watling for 12.
Mendis reached 31 before he, too, was caught behind by the same Southee-Watling combination.
Southee has two for 51 while Watling has had a hand in all four dismissals with three catches and finishing off the run-out of Jayasundera.
