Black Caps vs Sri Lanka live updates: Second Test, day three from Galle

All the action from the second test between the Black Caps and Sri Lanka at the Galle International Stadium, Galle, Sri Lanka.

Report from the second day:

“A lot of days are like that in Test cricket,” Glenn Phillips said of his side’s first-day struggles in the second Test against Sri Lanka. “We could come out tomorrow and they could potentially get thrown out for 330. It’s that simple.”

The second day was actually easy. Unfortunately for the Black Caps, Sri Lanka didn’t go out and instead of adding to their score a few more times overnight, they almost doubled it.

The simplicity lay more in the relentless and unhindered manner in which the hosts rallied and declared 602-5 before reducing their opponents to 22-2 after stumps.

The first figure was the sixth highest total allowed by New Zealand in Tests. The second is almost irrelevant; Either the tourists are saved by the predicted rain in Galle or they lose this series 0-2.

Based on the first two days of this Test, which followed a hard-fought 63-run lead in the opening game, a whitewash is much more deserved than a washout.

The Black Caps were bland and uninspired and could hardly prevent the irrepressible Kamindu Mendis from adding to their woes as they drew level with Sir Donald Bradman as the third fastest batsman to reach 1,000 Test runs.

Almost. Daryl Mitchell of course missed a direct chance to dismiss the batsman for 27 on the first day, while Tom Blundell missed his second chance to bat in the innings on the second day when Kamindu had reached 122.

New Zealand could perhaps take solace in the fact that this was the only missed opportunity after an opening day in which their hosts were granted up to five extra lives.

And they could rightly turn their attention to Kamindu, who remained unbeaten on 182 as Sri Lanka decided enough was enough, one of three centurions in the innings.

But the lack of near misses was of course due to the lack of chances, as Kamindu and Kusal Medis (106 nos) hit 22 fours and seven sixes while fending off a toothless attack.

Ajaz Patel was the somewhat unfortunate headliner. His wicketkeeper’s errors resulted in the spinner ending up wicketless while conceding 135 runs, the sixth-worst mark by a New Zealander.

Fittingly, Tim Southee became the youngest bowler to experience such a swoon with his 0-154 against England in 2022. The skipper, along with coach Gary Stead, should bear more blame for the defeat in Galle than Patel.

Who knows, perhaps Matt Henry and Michael Bracewell would have been as ineffective as Southee and Mitchell Santner, perhaps the batting-friendly conditions – which still allowed multiple chances – were too difficult for a foreign bowler to exploit.

The problem is the lack of imagination, the refusal to find an answer to these hypotheses, the continued reliance on a few trustworthy veterans despite their early testing difficulties and the presence of a few perfectly adequate alternatives in the team hotel.

Much of what followed the selection decisions should be reproduced as a footnote.

Phillips, upbeat after the first day and almost every other day, was the only bowler to succeed, taking three wickets that would cement Santner’s place in Patel’s category as a spinner never considered in New Zealand.

After Sri Lanka’s statement mercifully arrived, Tom Latham and Devon Conway were both dismissed late in the day. The latter continued his miserable performance despite being awarded a controversial catch.

The Black Caps then decided to send Patel out as a night watchman, ostensibly to protect Rachin Ravindra and the middle class from the miraculous turnaround.

It’s a wonder they bothered. It may have been doubtful whether Conway was caught cleanly, but this much was certain: the team that had fallen so far behind in the first two days is incapable of reviving such a lost cause.