Sri Lanka vs New Zealand 1st Test, Day 5 LIVE Score & Updates: Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the fifth day’s play of the ongoing first Test between Sri Lanka and New Zealand, which is taking place at Galle International Stadium in Galle. The hots need 2 wickets to win, whereas the Kiwis are 68 runs away from achieving the 275-run target.
On Day 4 of the match, rookie left-hander Rachin Ravindra’s unbeaten 91 gave New Zealand a slender chance. Set a target of 275, New Zealand were 207-8 at stumps with spinner Ajaz Patel on nought, to resume with Ravindra on Monday.
Ramesh Mendis and Prabath Jayasuriya picked up three wickets each on a sharply turning pitch in Galle, where the Black Caps have lost all four of their previous Test encounters.
Ravindra’s knock was the highest score by a New Zealander at the ground, eclipsing Ross Taylor’s 89 in 2019.
The left-hander appeared solid on a spin-friendly wicket but lacked support from other batsmen, with Kane Williamson and Tom Blundell the next biggest scorers on 30 apiece.
The tourists lost four wickets by tea before Ravindra’s 56-run stand with Blundell briefly revived hopes until the latter was bowled by Jayasuriya.
Jayasuriya also secured the key wicket of Williamson for 30, the former skipper lured out of his crease and stumped by wicketkeeper Kusal Mendis.
New Zealand opener Tom Latham was trapped lbw by Sri Lanka captain Dhananjaya de Silva for 28, while Ramesh bowled Daryl Mitchell for eight.
Williamson, Latham and Mitchell had all made half-centuries in the first innings.
Earlier, Ajaz Patel’s six-wicket haul helped restrict Sri Lanka to 309 in the morning.
His figures of 6-90 were the best by a New Zealand bowler in Sri Lanka since Daniel Vettori’s 6-64 in Colombo in 1998.
Playing XIs
Sri Lanka: Dimuth Karunaratne, Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis (WK), Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Dhananjaya de Silva (C), Kamindu Mendis, Ramesh Mendis, Prabath Jayasuriya, Lahiru Kumara, Asitha Fernando
New Zealand: Tom Latham, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell (WK), Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee (C), Ajaz Patel, William ORourke
