COLOMBO — New Zealand was within sight of its first Test victory in Sri Lanka in 14 years after 17 wickets fell on a thrilling penultimate day of the second and final Test here Wednesday. Tim Southee and Doug Bracewell rocked Sri Lanka with two wickets apiece to boost New Zealand's chances of posting a series-leveling win. The host, needing 363 to win, was struggling at 47-4 in its second innings at stumps on the penultimate day when 17 wickets fell at the P. Sara Oval in Colombo. Fast bowler Southee, who took five wickets in the first innings, continued to trouble the Sri Lankan batsmen as he removed openers Tharanga Paranavitana and Tillakaratne Dilshan in his lively opening spell. Paceman Bracewell then grabbed two big wickets when he bowled Kumar Sangakkara (16) and had skipper Mahela Jayawardene (five) caught behind. New Zealand skipper Ross Taylor, who scored a hundred in the first innings, top-scored with 74 after his team had lost three wickets for one run off four balls. New Zealand, leading by 168 runs, declared its second innings at 194-9 to set a challenging target for the host, which leads the series 1-0 following its 10-wicket win in the opening Test. The tourists slipped from 74-2 to 75-5 before Taylor and debutant Todd Astle (35) steadied the innings with a 97-run stand for the sixth wicket. Paceman Nuwan Kulasekara had Kane Williamson (18) caught by Paranavitana in the slips and then trapped Daniel Flynn leg-before with the last two balls of his eighth over. Left-arm spinner Rangana Herath then struck with the second delivery of the next over, having Kruger van Wyk caught by Paranavitana at leg-slip for a duck. Taylor played a responsible knock and reached his half-century with just one four when he fluently drove off-spinner Suraj Randiv through the covers, while Astle provided valuable support. Astle was unlucky to be caught after the tea-break as his attempted sweep off Randiv hit the boot of a close-in fielder before going to Dilshan at short mid-wicket. Southee earlier finished with 5-62 for his third five-wicket haul in a Test innings and left-arm paceman Trent Boult with 4-42 as Sri Lanka was bowled out for 244 in its first innings in reply to New Zealand's 412. — Agencies
Scorecard
New Zealand (1st innings) 412 Sri Lanka (1st innings) Paranavitana c van Wyk b Southee 40 Dilshan b Southee 05 Sangakkara c Boult b Southee 00 M. Jayawardene c Williamson b Boult 04 Mathews c Guptill b Southee 47 Samaraweera c Guptill b Boult 76 P. Jayawardene c Williamson b Patel 12 Randiv lbw b Boult 39 Kulasekara c Taylor b Southee 06 Herath c Williamson b Boult 05 Eranga not out 03 Extras (lb3, nb3, w1) 07 Total: (94 overs) 244 Falls: 1-7 (Dilshan), 2-7 (Sangakkara), 3-12 (M. Jayawardene), 4-102 (Paranavitana), 5-103 (Mathews), 6-128 (P. Jayawardene), 7-225 (Samaraweera), 8-232 (Randiv), 9-240 (Kulasekara), 10-244 (Herath). Bowling: Southee 22-4-62-5 (nb1), Boult 21-7-42-4 (nb2, w1), Patel 22-3-47-1, Astle 13-2-41-0, Bracewell 13-1-44-0, Williamson 3-1-5-0. New Zealand (2nd innings) Guptill c Dilshan b Eranga 11 McCullum st P. Jayawardene b Herath 35 Williamson c Paranavitana b K'sekara. 18 Taylor run out 74 Flynn lbw b Kulasekara 00 Van Wyk c Paranavitana b Herath 00 Astle c Dilshan b Randiv 35 Bracewell c Kulasekara b Herath 01 Southee not out 08 Patel st P. Jayawardene b Randiv 00 Boult not out 06 Extras (lb4, nb2) 06 Total (for 9 decl.; 54 overs) 194 Falls: 1-32 (Guptill), 2-56 (McCullum), 3-74 (Williamson), 4-74 (Flynn), 5-75 (van Wyk), 6-172 (Astle), 7-177 (Bracewell), 8-180 (Taylor), 9-182 (Patel). Bowling: Kulasekara 12-2-47-2, Eranga 10-1-39-1 (nb1), Herath 21-3-67-3, Randiv 11-1-37-2 (nb1). Sri Lanka (2nd innings) Paranavitana lbw b Southee 0 Dilshan c van Wyk b Southee 14 Sangakkara b Bracewel 16 M. Jayawardene c van Wyk b Bracewell 5 Samaraweera not ou 1 Mathews not out 1 Extras (b4, lb6) 10 Total (for 4; 15.4 overs) 47 Falls: 1-0 (Paranavitana), 2-35 (Dilshan), 3-41 (Sangakkara), 4-46 (M. Jayawardene). Bowling: Southee 6-0-19-2, Boult 5-2-12-0, Bracewell 4-3-5-2, Patel 0.4-0-1-0.
