Sri Lanka’s batsman showed defiance after losing an influential toss on a green pitch to reach 108-2 at lunch Friday on the first day of the second test against New Zealand.
New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum won the toss and sent Sri Lanka in on the lushly-grassed pitch at Seddon Park, but strike bowlers Tim Southee and Trent Boult initially struggled to take advantage of the conditions.
Sri Lanka resisted through opener Kusal Mendis, who made a quick 31, and Dinesh Chandimal who was 41 not out at lunch.
New Zealand took an hour to make a breakthrough, then Southee struck in consecutive overs, removing Dimuth Karunaratne for 12 and Mendis, leaving Sri Lanka on 44-2.
Chandimal and Udara Jayasundera (23) led Sri Lanka to lunch without further loss.
Boult, who has lacked confidence since returning from a back injury, was again down on pace and only rarely hit a challenging line.
Southee bowled better and was unlucky not to have a wicket with the second ball of his first over when Mendis was dropped by Ross Taylor at first slip; a simple chance from an outside edge.
New Zealand finally took a wicket just before drinks, when Southee had Karunaratne caught off an inside edge by wicketkeeper B.J. Watling. He also combined with Watling to dismiss Mendis, who had become a threat as he raced to 31 from 42 balls with four boundaries.
Watling’s two catches follow the nine he took in the first test at Dunedin, which New Zealand won by 122 runs to lead the two-match series 1-0, AP reports.
