After early wicket, Sri Lanka bats fire to open first Test

Kusal Mendis rushed to a half century from 40 balls and led Sri Lanka to 120-1 at lunch this afternoon on the first day of the first cricket test against New Zealand.

New Zealand won the toss and sent Sri Lanka in on a Hagley Oval pitch captain Tim Southee said had a “green tinge.” New Zealand bolstered its attack with a fourth seamer but the pitch and overcast conditions didn’t provide the support Southee hoped for when he took the new ball.

There was a little swing and New Zealand had three early appeals for lbw turned down. It reviewed the first unsuccessfully but didn’t bother with the others as Sri Lanka made its way cautiously to 27-1 after the first hour.

Southee and Matt Henry shared the first 10 overs and bowled well; full and mostly straight to allow for the little movement away from the right hander. The Sri Lanka batsmen were compact and careful, able to leave late.

Opener Oshada Fernandez was the only man out and to what was probably the worst ball of the morning. The delivery from Southee was short and heading down leg; Fernandez shuffled across to glance it and and managed only to tickle a catch to wicketkeeper Tom Blundell down the leg side.

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