Dimuth Karunaratne was closing in on his half-century yesterday when Sri Lanka reached stumps at 85-2 on a rain-hit opening day of the second and final Test against New Zealand at the P. Sara Oval.
Only 36.3 overs were possible after early rain and a wet outfield caused a delayed start and bad light resulted in an early finish.
After winning the toss, Karunaratne was unbeaten on 49 and in the middle with Angelo Mathews (0).
Kusal Mendis was out for 32 after tea, caught by wicketkeeper B.J. Watling off the seam of all-rounder Colin de Grandhomme.
Lahiru Thirimanne fell early in the innings when he was caught by New Zealand captain Kane Williamson off spinner William Somerville for 2.
De Grandhomme had bowling figures of 1-14 off 8.3 overs, while Somerville had 1-20.
Hosts Sri Lanka won the first Test by six wickets in Galle.
The Black Caps called up De Grandhomme and left out Mitchell Santner, one of the team’s three spinners to play in Galle.
Sri Lanka replaced Akila Dananjaya, who has been reported for a suspected illegal bowling action, with another spin bowler, Dilruwan Perera.
THE ASHES
Jofra Archer yesterday removed opener Marcus Harris to leave Australia on 12-1 at lunch as rained hampered the start of the third Ashes Test at Headingley.
Play got under way late in damp conditions in West Yorkshire, with Stuart Broad and Archer bowling well, Broad almost tempting David Warner into edging the ball on more than one occasion.
However, it was Harris, the replacement for Cameron Bancroft at the top of the order, who fell first, caught behind off Archer for 8.
Rain took the players off immediately after Harris’ dismissal and lunch was taken early, with just four overs having been bowled in the morning session.
SSC Napoli will have to wait one more week to seal the Serie A title after on Sunday being held to a goalless draw at Parma, while closest rivals Inter drew 2-2 in a dramatic game with SS Lazio. Antonio Conte’s team stayed one point ahead of Inter and were unfortunate not to win after twice striking the woodwork through Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Matteo Politano, while Scott McTominay also had a free-kick tipped onto the crossbar. The away side thought they would be handed a chance to take the points from the penalty spot in the 96th minute when David Neres
A stunning Lamine Yamal strike on Thursday helped crown Barcelona La Liga champions with a 2-0 win over local rivals RCD Espanyol, with victory ensuring Real Madrid cannot catch them at the top of the table. Yamal’s effort and Fermin Lopez’s goal took Hansi Flick’s side seven points clear of Los Blancos with two matches remaining, to clinch Barcelona’s 28th title and complete a superb domestic treble. Only the UEFA Champions League title escaped an exciting young Barca side this season, as they won the league for the second time in six years, at Espanyol’s ground again just as in 2022-2023. Back then,
Jannik Sinner on Thursday marched into the semi-finals of the Italian Open after destroying Casper Ruud in straight sets 6-0, 6-1, while Coco Gauff won a marathon three-set battle with China’s Zheng Qinwen to advance to the women’s singles final. American Gauff is to face Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in today’s title match after pulling through 7-6 (7/3), 4-6, 7-6 (7/4) in a match that lasted over three-and-a-half hours. Ruud was supposed to be Sinner’s toughest test in Rome since he came back from his three-month doping ban, as the Norwegian came into the match in hot form on clay after winning in
Shohei Ohtani on Thursday delivered his first two-homer game of the season and had six RBIs as the Los Angeles Dodgers poured it on with five long balls in a 19-2 victory over the visiting Athletics. Max Muncy, Andy Pages and James Outman also hit home runs for the Dodgers, who left no doubt by taking a 13-2 lead following a seven-run third inning. Muncy and Kim Hye-seong each had three hits for Los Angeles. Dodgers right-hander Matt Sauer led off a bullpen game by allowing two runs in four innings. Left-hander Justin Wrobleski (1-1) finished with four scoreless innings after he
RSS