Good morning! Hello and welcome to CricketCountry‘s live coverage of Day Two of the second Test between New Zealand and Sri Lanka at the Seddon Park, Hamilton. I am Pramod Ananth along with Sakshi Gupta, and we will be bringing you the live updates from this game. Sri Lanka ended Day One at 264 for 7, with skipper Angelo Mathews still unbeaten on 63. Sri Lanka lost two wickets in quick succession right in the end before rain stopped play. New Zealand managed to bowl only 67 overs and the play is therefore set to begin a bit early to make up for the lost overs. Sri Lanka made a decent start to their innings, but just like the Test innings, no player went on to make a century again despite getting off to a start. Live Cricket Scorecard: New Zealand vs Sri Lanka 2015-16, 2nd Test, Day 2 at Hamilton
Live cricket score New Zealand 207/8 | Overs 74 | Trail by 85 | Batsmen: Doug Bracewell 21(38), Neil Wagner 1(9): Short balls are doing thr trick for Sri Lanka, as the hosts continue to struggle against them. One more down against one of those. Southee moves towards off side, pulls a shot but manages only a thick edge that is nicely caucght by Jayasundera at the fine leg. However, Southee’s tradition of at least one boundary in a Test innings continues, he did hit a four before getting dismissed in the 72nd over. A fourth wicket for Dushmantha Chameera. 10 overs up for Chameera and he has troubled the Black Caps undobtedly, maintained his economy well below 3 most of times. OUT! Tim Southee c Jayasundera b Dushmantha Chameera 4(5)
Live cricket score New Zealand 200/7| Overs 72 | Trail by 92 | Batsmen: Doug Bracewell 16(35), Tim Southee 4(4): Lakmal strikes towards final few overs of Day 2. BJ Watling drives well but only manages to find Vithanage in the gully. The ball went very low when it reached the fielder, umpires check if the catch has been taken cleanly. And it indeed has been taken cleanly by Vithanage. And New Zealand lose another wicket, not a great day for the hosts. They continue to struggle. OUT! BJ Watling c Vithanage b Lakmal 28(82)
Live cricket score New Zealand 171/6| Overs 64 | Trail by 121 | Batsmen: BJ Watling 19(64), Doug Bracewell 0(9): Pradeep goes around the wicket, a fuller length delivery which finds a thick outside edge from Santner’s landing straight into the gloves of Dinesh Chandimal behind the wicket. Sri Lankans appeal but the on-field umpire seemed unconvinced. The visitors go for the third umpire who turns down the on-field umpire’s decision to send Santner back to the pavilion. An 105-ball struggle came to an end, leaving the Black Caps at 168 for 6. The dismissal happened on the very first delivery of the 63rd over. OUT! Mitchell Santner c Dinesh Chandimal b Numan Pradeep 38(105)
Live cricket score New Zealand 167/5| Overs 62 | Trail by 125 | Batsmen: Mitchell Santner 38(103), BJ Watling 16(62): After Lakmal bowled a maiden in the 61st over, Herath’s over was a good one for the Kiwis for scoring 6 runs off it. The New Zealanders have scored only 25 runs in th elast 10 overs and they need this pair to get going to ensure a decent lead in the first innings. Santner takes a single off the last delivery of the 62nd over to keep strike.
Live cricket score New Zealand 146/5| Overs 53 | Trail by 146| Batsmen: Mitchell Santner 27 (77), BJ Watling 6 (34): Play resumed after tea with Herath bowling the first over. The run rate has been constantly below 3, and that indicates the Lankans’ controlled bowling and New Zealand’s stuggle against them. A dot ball to end the 53rd over which was bowled by Lakmal. However, Watling had managed a boundary on the fourth delivery so that over ended with Black Caps getting four runs.
Live cricket score New Zealand 146/5| Overs 53 | Trail by 146| Batsmen: Mitchell Santner 27 (77), BJ Watling 6 (34): Play resumed after tea with Herath bowling the first over. The run rate has been constantly below 3, and that indicates the Lankans’ controlled bowling and New Zealand’s stuggle against them. A dot ball to end the 53rd over which was bowled by Lakmal. However, Watling had managed a boundary on the fourth delivery so that over ended with Black Caps getting four runs.
Live cricket score New Zealand 133/5| Overs 47 | Trail by 159| Batsmen: Mitchell Santner 22 (61), BJ Watling 0 (14): Sri Lanka get the important wicket of McCullum just before tea and have the momentum going into the break. They will now look to bowl New Zealand quickly once play resumes. Mitchell Santner has gotten his eye in and is joined by BJ Watling, who is a tough customer. TEA REPORT
Live cricket score New Zealand 119/4| Overs 41 | Trail by 173| Batsmen: Brendon McCullum 17 (51), Mitchell Santner 12 (41): McCullum have played through the tough phases and they seem to have gotten their eye in. They will look to survive till tea and look to get close to the Sri Lankan score in the final session. Sri Lanka too have not managed to find any success after they picked up a flurry of wickets after lunch.
Live cricket score New Zealand 101/4| Overs 35 | Trail by 191| Batsmen: Brendon McCullum 7 (32), Mitchell Santner 6 (22): New Zealand have not lost any further wickets as McCullum and Santner are weathering the storm quite well at the moment. New Zealand have also brought up their 100. They will need this pair to survive till tea and add as much as possible after that. Sri Lanka have managed to keep things tight at the moment, but not let their advantage slip.
Live cricket score New Zealand 91/4| Overs 29 | Trail by 205| Batsmen: Brendon McCullum 3 (15), Mitchell Santner 0 (3): New Zealand have lost another one and this time it’s the wicket of Ross Taylorn for a duck. Another short ball from Chameera and Taylor tries to fend it away and the ball takes his gloves, pops up in the air and goes to the wicketkeeper, Dinesh Chandimal. Fantastic bowling from Chameera, who has his third wicket now. Mitchell Santner is the new batsman. There’s some early pressure on McCullum too as Sri Lanka take a review after the umpire turned down a LBW shout. McCullum manages to survive. OUT! Ross Taylor c Chandimal b Chameera 0 (5)
Live cricket score New Zealand 87/3| Overs 26 | Trail by 205| Batsmen: Ross Taylor 0 (3), Brendon McCullum 1 (1): Big blow for New Zealand as their most dependable batsman Kane Williamson is dismissed for a single. Chameera strike again. Bowling around the wicket, Chameera digs it in short and Williamson takes him on and goes for the pull. He top edges one and Lakmal at deep square leg has to move a little bit but completes a safe catch eventually. This is just the kind of start Sri Lanka would have wanted after the lunch break. Meanwhile, Guptill reaches his half-century and is also dismissed in the very next delivery. Two new batsmen at the crease for the hosts now. OUT! Kane Williamson c Lakmal b Chameera 1 (4), Martin Guptill c Mathews b Herath 50 (77)
Live cricket score New Zealand 81/1| Overs 23 | Trail by 211| Batsmen: Martin Guptill 47 (66), Kane Williamson 0 (1): New Zealand have made an excellent start after the lunch break. Guptill smashed Chameera to a couple of boundaries in the first over after lunch. Latham does not want to be left behind either. Even he gets into the act by sweeping Herath to a boundary off the second delivery he faces after lunch. But Latham is dismissed off the very next over by Chameera after he flicks the ball straight to Karunaratne, who is standing at leg gully. OUT! Tom Latham c Karunaratne b Chameera 28 (72)
Live cricket score New Zealand 61/0| Overs 20 | Trail by 231| Batsmen: Martin Guptill 39 (59), Tom Latham 21 (62): Guptill and Latham have batted brilliantly well so far and have taken their side to lunch without any damage. They are also not afraid to play the bowlers over the top. Both batsmen have also hit a six each. New Zealand are in an excellent position in this match and will look to pile on misery for Sri Lanka once play resumes. Sri Lanka on the other hand will be in desperate search of wickets in the post-lunch session. LUNCH REPORT
Live cricket score New Zealand 40/0| Overs 15 | Trail by 252| Batsmen: Martin Guptill 27 (49), Tom Latham 13 (40): New Zealand have managed to get off to an excellent start. Their openers seem to be in no trouble whatsoever. Sri Lanka must break the partnership before the lunch break to have some sort of momentum.
Live cricket score New Zealand 19/0| Overs 9 | Trail by 273| Batsmen: Martin Guptill 11 (28), Tom Latham 8 (26):After a cautious start, Latham and Guptill are slowly beginning to find their feet, with both of them striking boundaries as well. Sri Lanka have not made a bowling change yet as Lakmal and Mathews have bowled in tandem. Mathews should perhaps replace himself with Chameera or Pradeep soon.
Live cricket score New Zealand 2/0| Overs 4 | Trail by 290| Batsmen: Martin Guptill 1 (10), Tom Latham 1 (14): New Zealand are off to a slow start as the opening bowlers Lakmal and Mathews have managed to keep things tight at the moment. Mathews generally does not open the bowling, but he must be feeling confident after scoring 77 with the bat. Guptill and Latham struck centuries in the first Test and will be looking to get amongst the runs in this match as well.
Live cricket score Sri Lanka 292 | Overs 80.1| Batsmen: Dushmantha Chameera 2 (33), Suranga Lakmal 2 (5): Sri Lanka lose one more wicket and this time its the wicket of Suranga Lakmal for four. He had a lucky break in the previous delivery when the ball ht the middle stump, but the bails did not fall. Wagner bowls a short ball next and in an attempt to fend it away, he ends up giving a catch to Williamson, who is standing at gully. But the last wicket partnership too could not last long as Chameera to-edges on to McCulluma at mid-off. OUT! Suranga lakmal c Williamson b Wagner 4 (17), Dushmantha Chameera c mcCullum b Bracewell 4 (46)
Live cricket score Sri Lanka 286/8 | Overs 75| Batsmen: Dushmantha Chameera 2 (33), Suranga Lakmal 2 (5): Got him! A big wicket for Sri Lanka as their skipper Angelo Mathews is dismissed for 77. He managed to add just 14 runs to his overnight score. Tom Latham at third slip completes a catch after Mathews pokes at a ball outside off. Suranga Lakmal is the new batsman. OUT! Angelo Mathews c Latham b Southee 77 (125)
Live cricket score Sri Lanka 283/7 | Overs 73| Batsmen: Angelo Mathews 77 (124), Dushmantha Chameera 2 (27): Sri Lanka start well on Day Two. Angelo Mathews has gone past the 4,000-run mark in Tests and will be a key figure in this innings for the visitors as they look for a score close to 350. Chameera is giving him company at the other end.
Dinesh Chandimal was looking in good touch, but lost his concentration a bit in the post-lunch session and lost his wicket as a result. He however managed to put on a 71-run stand with Udara Jayasundera, which steadied the Sri Lankan innings to a certain extent after they lost both their openers. Mathews then along with Milinda Siriwardana put on 138 for the fifth wicket, which handed the control back to Sri Lanka. But after Siriwardana was dismissed, Sri Lanka lost a couple of wickets in a hurry, giving New Zealand the momentum at the end of the day. DAY 1 REPORT: Angelo Mathews remains unbeaten as Sri Lanka post 264/7 against New Zealand at stumps of 2nd Test
Much more was expected off New Zealand seamers as the pitch at Seddon Park is a green track. Tim Southee and Trent Boult managed to pick up a couple of wickets. Doug Bracewell managed to chip in with a wicket as well. Neil Wagner and Mitchell Santner proved out to be bit expensive. New Zealand had wo nthe toss on Day One and elected to bowl first. Both teams did not make any changes to their playing XI from the first Test.
Playing XI:
New Zealand: Brendon McCullum (c),Martin Guptill, Tom Latham, Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Mitchell Santner, BJ Watling (wk), Doug Bracewell, Tim Southee, Neil Wagner, Trent Boult
Sri Lanka: Angelo Mathews (c), Dimuth Karunaratne, Kusal Mendis, Udara Jayasundera, Dinesh Chandimal (wk), Kithuvuran Vithanage, Milinda Siriwardana, Rangana Herath, Dushmantha Chameera, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep.
Catch Ball-by-ball updates of the 2nd Test between New Zealand and Sri Lanka at Hamilton here