The three-match T20 series between New Zealand and Sri Lanka started today at Eden Park. Sri Lanka got a brilliant start in this series as they defeated the home team in a dramatic match. The match didn’t end in 20 overs, so it went into the super over, where the Lankan beat New Zealand with four balls left.
Match Report
New Zealand hosted Sri Lanka in the first match of the series at Eden Park. Kiwi captain Tom Latham won the toss and decided to bowl first in this match. Therefore, the Lankans started their batting innings with Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis.
Unfortunately, Sri Lanka had a poor start as they lost Pathum Nissanka in the very first ball of the innings. But Kusal Mendis and Kusal Perera tried hard to get a good result. They made a partnership of 47 runs to tackle the initial disaster. Their partnership was looking good as both batters were much more aggressive on the pitch. But Henry Shipley picked up Kusal Mendis in the 4th over.
Dhananjaya de Silva, the following batter, also failed to stay long. He departed the crease after scoring 15 runs. But Kusal Perera played a fantastic innings with Charith Asalanka. Their 103 runs partnership helped the team score 196 runs in 20 overs. Charith Asalanka scored the highest 67 runs before losing the wicket, while Kusal Perera remained not out for 53 runs.
Chasing the target, New Zealand also had a bad start. Their two openers lost their wickets in the first two overs. However, Tom Latham and Daryl Mitchell tackled the situation by making a partnership of 63 runs. Tom Latham scored 27 off 16 balls with five boundaries, while Daryl Mitchell continued scoring runs.
Relying on Mitchell’s bat, New Zealand were heading toward the target. He scored 66 off 34 balls before leaving the pitch. But the match became more exciting in the last over. New Zealand needed seven runs from the last ball, and guess what? Ish Sodhi hit a six and tied the match in the very last ball of the innings. Therefore, the match went into the super over, where scored only 8 runs. Sri Lanka took only two balls to win this match in the super over.
