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The Kiwis were on fire on the field in the second ODI against Sri Lanka on Wednesday as they recorded a resounding 113-run win in Hamilton to take a 2-0 lead and seal the three-match series.
The match was led by two spectacular goals. First, captain Mitchell Santner, who was bought by Mumbai Indians for INR 2 crore in the IPL 2025 auction, reacted sharply mid-play to dismiss Charith Asalanka with an acrobatic delivery to the non-striker’s side.
The next incident occurred when New Zealand were in a comfortable position after reducing Sri Lanka to 131/8. However, Nathan Smith took nothing for granted. Fielding at deep fine leg, Smith went on a run after Eshan Malinga edged ORourke’s short bowled ball behind the wicket and threw himself several inches above the ground to catch the ball while it was in the air.
It showed that the Black Caps were leaving nothing to chance as they quickly claimed victory by dismissing Theekshana in the 31st minute.
Also Read: Theekshana portends danger ahead of IPL 2025 with hat-trick
New Zealand takes an unassailable lead
In a rain-soaked match that was reduced to 37 overs a side, New Zealand made 255/9 after opener Rachin Ravindra scored a spirited 79 off 63 balls and Mark Chapman made 62 off 52 balls. Sri Lanka used seven bowlers in total and Maheesh Theekshana took a hat-trick in their spell of 4-44. The Black Caps reached a considerable total thanks to the useful contributions of Daryl Mitchell (38), Glenn Phillips (22) and Santner, who added 20.
The total turned out to be a very steep mountain for Sri Lanka as they could barely make any headway. As Jacob Duffy, Matt Henry and William ORourke struck at regular intervals, the visitors fell from 6/1 in the second to 79/5 in the 16th over.
In-form batsman Kamindu Mendis tried to regain the chase with a 66-ball 64, but his teammates kept falling at the other end. ORourke was picked among the bowlers with 3-31, while Jacob Duffy got two wickets. Smith, Santner and Henry got a wicket each.
Ravindra was named Man of the Match for his 79th goal.
The hosts now have an unassailable 2-0 lead in the ODI series after winning the three-match T20I series 2-1. The final and third ODI will be played at Eden Park in Auckland on Saturday.
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