Peiris, Jayasuriya crush New Zealand to hand Sri Lanka series sweep
New Zealand's lower middle order put up a fight, but couldn't avoid an innings defeat
New Zealand's lower middle order put up a fight, but couldn't avoid an innings defeat
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Scorer: @Thilak_Rama | Commentator: @himanshu_a30
Dhananjaya now receives the series trophy, and calls on his team-mates to bask in the glory of the win. Sri Lanka unearth a star in Kamindu Mendis, who continues to sparkle, and stand out. New Zealand, meanwhile, head to India for a three-match Test series which begins on October 16. Thanks for joining us for this Test, though, as this is Himanshu signing off on behalf of Thilak and Fidel! Take care!
Dhananjaya de Silva, Sri Lanka's captain: "I call well and toss well! Nishan was brilliant, he was doing well in domestic cricket. He has the control. We have been practising hard [with the catching], and it has paid off."
Tim Southee, New Zealand's captain: "Tough place to come. In this match, it was a lot harder. But in the first match, we had our moments and chances. Sri Lanka are playing some great cricket. We go home, regroup and then to India - same part of the world. Always find some positives... guys looking to put pressure on the bowlers."
Prabath Jayasuriya is the Player of the Series for his 18 wickets: "Nishan Peiris is good. It was positive from him. This pitch was harder than the previous one. We plan to do our basic things [right]. We just try to keep bowling wicket to wicket."
Kamindu Mendis is the Player of the Match for 182*: "I'm enjoying scoring runs - especially in Galle, which is my hometown. Credit goes to Kusal and Chandimal as well. It's [about having] the same mindset, and some small changes I made for England. I changed some things for here as well. We have to improve day by day... there are upcoming Test tours, one-dayers and T20s."
Time for the presentations
1.07pm Sri Lanka win by an innings and 154 runs, and take the series 2-0. This is their third Test win in a row, carrying forward from the England tour. You knew New Zealand would play catch up for the rest of the game the moment Sri Lanka put up 602 in the first innings. That seems ages ago, when Kamindu hit 182*, and joined Don Bradman as the third-fastest to 1000 Test runs. Jayasuriya and debutant Peiris joined hands thereafter, puncturing New Zealand's car by folding them up for 88 in the first innings. But following on in the second innings, there were some positives for the visitors, too - Conway, Phillips, Blundell and Santner fought back, even as it was always a mountain to climb. Hang around for the match and series awards.
MJ Santner st †BKG Mendis b Peiris 67 (150m 115b 6x4 3x6) SR: 58.26
Over the stumps now
From around to O'Rourke
And is R Ashwin the only player to take a five-for and score a hundred in a Test at the same ground twice?
When you've had it as good as New Zealand have had it for so long, letting go is hard. But things change, and the world moves on
He said that it was important that New Zealand got overs into their spinners in Galle, which should help them in next month's India Tests
Their series win against NZ allows Sri Lanka to ponder the prospect of a WTC final berth next year
New Zealand's lower middle order put up a fight, but couldn't avoid an innings defeat