Dilshan, Kusal seal series for Sri Lanka

Nov 21, 2013

New Zealand, put in to bat, got off to a slow start, and Nuwan Kulasekara had Hamish Rutherford caught behind by Kumar Sangakkara in the second over•AFP

Anton Devcich counterattacked by slamming four fours and a six, but was dismissed for a 23-ball 30•AFP

Mitchell McClenaghan gave the visitors the strong start they needed in the chase, trapping Mahela Jayawardene lbw in the second over•AFP

The pair added 96 for the second wicket, in 71 deliveries, to frustrate the New Zealand bowlers•AFP

The visitors were dealt another blow eight deliveries later, as Angelo Mathews removed Neil Broom for 6, leaving New Zealand at 14 for 2 after 2.3 overs•AFP

The hosts continued to pile on the pressure, as debutant Ramith Rambukwella dismissed Tom Latham for his first international scalp, and New Zealand were soon wobbling at 93 for 5•AFP

Tillakaratne Dilshan led the recovery, scoring fluently on his way to a half-century•AFP

Kusal was in fine touch, hitting six fours and two massive sixes during his knock, but he was caught by Rob Nicol off his own bowling in the 14th over •AFP

But Luke Ronchi ensured they got to a reasonable total, whacking 34 off 25 balls and adding 45 for the sixth wicket with Nathan McCullum to take New Zealand to 142 for 7•AFP

Kusal Perera provided ample support at the other end, playing more aggressively and racing to 57 off 37 balls•AFP

Dilshan, however, carried on, extending his fabulous run in limited-overs cricket to take Sri Lanka home with 2.1 overs remaining, and seal the two-match series 1-0•AFP