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CHRISTCHURCH: New Zealand’s batsmen capitalised on a record-breaking bowling spell by Trent Boult on Thursday to wrest full control of the second Test from Sri Lanka at the end of the second day.
Jeet Raval (74) and Tom Latham (74 not out) completed half-centuries and Kane Williamson made 48 as New Zealand finished the day at 231-2, with an overall lead of 305.
New Zealand were able to build on a wholly unexpected 74-run first innings lead, achieved when Boult took six wickets for four runs in the space of 15 balls to send Sri Lanka tumbling from 96-4 to 104 all out.
His first five wickets came faster than any other bowler in Test history; from 11 balls, beating Jacques Kallis’s record of 12 balls against Bangladesh in 2002.
Sri Lanka had looked in a strong position when they resumed at 88-4 in reply to New Zealand’s first innings of 178 but Boult’s Test-best return of 6-30 turned the match on its head.
The left-armer, who has 224 wickets in 58 Tests, began the day with 0-20 in Sri Lanka’s first innings after struggling for form in the first Test at Wellington where he took 2-145. He also managed only seven wickets for 262 runs in three Tests against Pakistan in the UAE.
Suddenly the dry spell of wickets turned into a flood and Boult went from 0-26 to 6-30, narrowly missing a hat-trick when he took three wickets with four balls.
Boult admitted he felt some frustration when the wickets weren’t coming, though he felt he was bowling well. “I think a little bit can creep if you let it,” he told Sky Sports. “It’s been a tough time. In the UAE it’s tough conditions for a seam bowler and you come here and you almost expect it to happen. We know what works well here and we kept it in good areas.”
Boult’s first two wickets were caught by his new ball partner Tim Southee in the slips and his next four fell lbw, three within the space of four balls. England umpire Michael Gough gave five decisions in a row in Boult’s favour.
His first victim was the overnight batsman Roshen Silva who fell for 21 in the fifth over of the morning, caught by Southee at third slip after driving at a ball which swung late.
Wicket-keeper Niroshan Dickwella fell next to a brilliant catch by Southee, at full stretch, from a ball which also enticed the drive but left him late. The next four wickets fell at an even more frantic pace and to similar lbw decisions.
Dilruwan Perera shouldered arms at a ball from Boult which was full and swung back onto middle stump. Suranga Lakmal received a similar delivery from the very next ball and was hit on the toe in front of middle.
Boult had to wait until the next over to chase his hat-trick, bowling to tailender Dushmantha Chameera. Chameera met the hat-trick ball with a solid forward defensive shot but was out lbw to the next ball, giving Boult three wickets in four balls and his seventh five-wicket bag in Tests. Lahiru Kumara was his final victim four balls later, also out lbw without offering a shot.
Angelo Mathews, almost immovable in the first Test where he scored 83 and 121 not out, was left unbeaten on 33.
New Zealand’s batsmen prospered in increasingly benign conditions. Raval reached his seventh Test half-century from 122 balls and Latham followed him from 155 balls.
Scoreboard
NEW ZEALAND (1st Innings) 178 (T. Southee 68, B. Watling 46; Lakmal 5-54)
SRI LANKA (1st Innings, overnight 88-4):
D. Karunaratne c Williamson b Southee 7
D. Gunathilaka c Raval b Southee 8
D. Chandimal c Watling b Southee 6
K. Mendis c Watling b de Grandhomme 15
A. Mathews not out 33
R. Silva c Southee b Boult 21
N. Dickwella c Southee b Boult 4
D. Perera lbw Boult 0
S. Lakmal lbw Boult 0
D. Chameera lbw Boult 0
L. Kumara lbw Boult 0
EXTRAS (B-5, LB-5) 10
TOTAL (all out, 41 overs) 104
FALL OF WKTS: 1-10, 2-20, 3-21, 4-51, 5-94, 6-100, 7-100, 8-100, 9-104
BOWLING: Boult 15-8-30-6; Southee 15-5-35-3; de Grandhomme 6-0-19-1; Wagner 5-0-10-0
NEW ZEALAND (2nd Innings):
J. Raval c Mendis b Perera 74
T. Latham not out 74
K. Williamson c Mendis b Kumara 48
R. Taylor not out 25
EXTRAS (B-3, LB-1, WD-3, NB-3) 10
TOTAL (for two wkts, 79 overs) 231
FALL OF WKTS: 1-121, 2-189
BOWLING (to-date): Lakmal 16-5-38-0; Kumara 19-4-60-1 (1w); Chameera 15-5-53-0 (2w, 2nb); Perera 20-2-57-1 (1nb); Gunathilaka 9-2-19-0
Published in Dawn, December 28th, 2018
