Tillakaratne Dilshan made a flawless 116 to lead Sri lanka to a comfortable six-wicket win over New Zealand on Thursday, leveling the seven-match one-day series at 1-1. Chasing New Zealand’s 248, Sri lanka reached the target with 14 balls to spare thanks chiefly to Dilshan’s 17th one-day century. Earlier, New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum made 117 from 99 balls but the Black Caps’ batting effort descended into chaos after McCullum departed, with four run outs destroying the middle order.
Dilshan then brilliantly paced the Sri lanka reply, reaching his century from 116 balls and finally falling in the 46th over with only 12 runs needed for victory. He was well-supported throughout the Sri lanka innings. Kumar Sangakkara made 38, Mahela Jayawardene 27 and Angelo Mathews 39. McCullum tried to play Dilshan’s role for the Kiwis, setting his team up for a score in excess of 300, but no-one took up the baton when he was out. When he fell he had scored 117 of New Zealand’s total of 158. Sri lanka won for the first time on its New Zealand tour after losing the test series 2-0 and the one-day opener.
Brief Scores:
New Zealand: 248 (McCullum 117) lose to Sri lanka: 252/4 in 47.4 overs (Dilshan 116)