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Chandimal century powers Sri Lanka to 194-2 against New Zealand / Photo: © AFP
Chandimal century powers Sri Lanka to 194-2 against New Zealand
Dinesh Chandimal's unbeaten century in Galle powered Sri Lanka to 194-2 at tea on the opening day of the second Test against New Zealand on Thursday.
The left-hander was undeterred by the end of his 122-run stand with Dimuth Karunaratne, who was run out on 46 soon after lunch owing to a miscommunication between the pair.
Karunaratne walked back to the pavilion fuming but Chandimal pushed ahead, hitting his 16th Test century with a single off Kiwi spinner Mitchell Santner.
He was aggressive from the outset, capitalising on loose deliveries and hitting 13 boundaries as New Zealand missed two chances to break the partnership.
Chandimal was on 107 at the break alongside Angelo Mathews on 35, who reached the milestone of 2,000 Test runs on the notoriously bowler-friendly Galle pitch.
New Zealand saw a day of missed opportunities as Chandimal capitalised on loose deliveries, hitting 13 boundaries.
Chandimal was dropped on five by Daryl Mitchell in the fourth over, while wicketkeeper Tom Blundell missed a chance to stump Karunaratne on 17 off the spin of Ajaz Patel.
Sri Lanka won the opening match of the two-Test series by 63 runs. New Zealand have not won any of their five previous Tests at Galle.
New Zealand players wore black armbands to honour the late Ian Taylor, who was the manager of the Black Caps from 1980 to 1990.
O. Henrique--JDB
