Day 02 of the second Test match between Sri Lanka and New Zealand ended on a high for the hosts who scored a total of 580 runs for the loss of four wickets in the first innings.
The New Zealanders’ Kane Williamson and Henry Nicholls scored double centuries each, with a total of 215 and 200 runs under their wings, respectively.
They put on a mammoth 363-run partnership while they ground the Sri Lanka bowlers down.
Then, declaring at 580, New Zealand’s seamers bowled brilliantly with the new ball, consistently threatening the outside edge and reaped the rewards with Oshada Fernando and Kusal Mendis back in the hut.
Doug Bracewell, playing his first Test after more than six years, picked one of those two, after Matt Henry gave the first breakthrough with the first ball of a brilliant over.
The visitors trail by 544 runs, having put up a meagre score of 26 for the loss of two wickets at the end of the 17th over.
Captain Dimuth Karunaratne and bowler Prabath Jayasuriya remained on the field, while Oshada Fernando was knocked out of the game at six runs, while Kusal Mendis was out of the field no sooner he was on it after a stunning ball by Devon Conway.
