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Sri Lanka 247 (Mahela 91, Mathews 79, Southee 4-46) lead New Zealand 221 by 26 runs
New Zealand bounced back strongly from a wicketless second session, claiming five Sri Lankan wickets post tea to limit the hosts' advantage to 26, after Mahela Jayawardene and Angelo Mathews had threatened to take a much larger lead.
James Franklin broke the resistance, inducing an edge from Mathews and ending the sixth-wicket stand on 156. Sri Lanka were 15 behind at the time. They also lost Prasanna Jayawardene before the lead was taken and Mahela eventually steered his team ahead via a reverse-swept boundary off Jeetan Patel.
Patel, however, denied Mahela a hundred, when an attempted sweep resulted in the ball bobbing up off the glove and Kruger van Wyk dived forward to take a sharp catch. Patel finished with 3 for 55 as Sri Lanka were dismissed for 247. New Zealand were left with 12 overs to face in the day.
New Zealand bounced back strongly from a wicketless second session, claiming five Sri Lankan wickets post tea to limit the hosts' advantage to 26, after Mahela Jayawardene and Angelo Mathews had threatened to take a much larger lead.
James Franklin broke the resistance, inducing an edge from Mathews and ending the sixth-wicket stand on 156. Sri Lanka were 15 behind at the time. They also lost Prasanna Jayawardene before the lead was taken and Mahela eventually steered his team ahead via a reverse-swept boundary off Jeetan Patel.
Patel, however, denied Mahela a hundred, when an attempted sweep resulted in the ball bobbing up off the glove and Kruger van Wyk dived forward to take a sharp catch. Patel finished with 3 for 55 as Sri Lanka were dismissed for 247. New Zealand were left with 12 overs to face in the day.