It was Kusal Mendis and their spinners who came to the party to hand Sri Lanka their first ODI series win against New Zealand since 2012 as they took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.
The hosts will now look to go for the clean sweep in the third ODI, for which here are our match preview and predictions.
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The rain-hit second ODI saw New Zealand put to bat first, and the Lankan spinners caused them all sorts of trouble from the get-go. Openers Tim Robinson and Henry Nicholls were sent back to the pavilion early on, and the visitors were in a spot of bother at 98/4 at one point before Mark Chapman and Mitchell Hay put up a 75-run partnership, after which another collapse followed as the last five batters could only manage 19 runs as New Zealand ended up with just 209.
Mitchell Santner then took the responsibility in his own hands as he opened the bowling and sent Avishka Fernando back early, but barring Michael Bracewell, who managed to get among the wickets, the hosts got home with three wickets to spare. Bracewell’s four-for, along with some tight bowling from his spinners, is something Santner will look forward to in the final game of the tour as well.
For the hosts, their spinners were on the money right from the get-go. Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, and Jeffrey Vandersay spun a web around the Kiwi batters, and even though there was a bit of a hiccup with the bat as Bracewell ran through their middle batting order, a calm and composed 74* from Kusal Mendis saw Sri Lanka home, with Theekshana also playing a crucial knock of 27*.
The final ODI of the series will also take place at Pallekele, which means we should expect another low-scoring encounter with the spinners having a field day. Given their spinners and the home advantage, count on Sri Lanka to sweep the series.
Fantasy XI: Kusal Mendis, Avishka Fernando, Mark Chapman, Glenn Philips, Charith Asalanka, Mitchell Santner, Matheesha Theekshana, Michael Bracewell, Ish Sodhi, Dunith Wellalage, Jeffrey Vandersay
Venue: Pallekele
Winners Prediction: Sri Lanka
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