New Zealand's tour of Sri Lanka ended with another loss for the visitors as they were defeated in the second Test of a two-match Test series.
Sri Lanka triumphed by an innings and 154 runs on the fourth day in Galle on Sunday. Left-arm spinner Prabath Jayasuriya shone throughout the series, earning Player of the Series honors with a remarkable total of 18 wickets across both matches.
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Kamindu Mendis was awarded Man of the Match for his stellar unbeaten 182, which played a key role in Sri Lanka's formidable total of 602-5 declared.
New Zealand's batsmen struggled against Sri Lanka’s spin-dominant bowling. Debutant Nishan Peiris supported Jayasuriya brilliantly, also claiming nine wickets, including a five-wicket haul in the second innings.
New Zealand’s troubles began early when they were dismissed for just 88 in their first innings. Although they fought back in the second, scoring 360 — their highest total of the tour and in Galle — it was ultimately insufficient to change the outcome of the match.
Read More: Which players have scored a hundred and taken five wickets more than once in Test matches?
World Test Championship points distribution for SL vs NZ series
The two-match Test series had 24 points up for grabs, and Sri Lanka claimed all of them, leaving New Zealand with nothing.
New Zealand have now dropped to seventh place in the points table with a 37.50 pct (points percentage). They have won 3 out of the 8 matches they played in the 2023-25 cycle while losing 5.
Sri Lanka on the other hand, have now further improved their pct after the win, having played 9 matches in the cycle, with 5 wins and 4 losses and a 55.56 points percentage.
Latest updated World Test Championship points table
| Pos. | Team | M | W | L | D | Pts. | Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | India | 10 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 86 | 71.67 |
| 2 | Australia | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 90 | 62.50 |
| 3 | Sri Lanka | 9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 48 | 55.56 |
| 4 | England | 16 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 81 | 42.19 |
| 5 | Bangladesh | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 33 | 39.29 |
| 6 | South Africa | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 28 | 38.89 |
| 7 | New Zealand | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 36 | 37.50 |
| 8 | Pakistan | 7 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 16 | 22.22 |
| 9 | West Indies | 9 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 20 | 18.52 |
(Table correct as of September 29th, 2024)
(PCT stands for Points Percentage System.)
Calculation: PCT = Points won by a team / Points contested * 100.
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