In a thrilling first Twenty20 match at Eden Park, Sri Lanka edged past the Black Caps, ending their extended unbeaten run in the shortest form. Ish Sodhi hit a towering six from the final ball of the innings, dramatically leveling the scores and leaving the match tied at 196-8.
However, the tourists comfortably triumphed in the subsequent super over, with Maheesh Theekshana making the decisive contribution. The offspinner removed Jimmy Neesham and Mark Chapman while ceding eight runs in the additional over.
Charith Asalanka sealed the victory for Sri Lanka by hitting a six and a boundary off Adam Milne’s second and third balls, respectively. With this win, Sri Lanka took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
The Black Caps’ undefeated run in five consecutive matches across formats, which began after their first test against England in February, came to a halt with their recent loss to Sri Lanka. This also marked Sri Lanka’s first victory of the tour after being defeated in the tests and ODIs.
Charith Asalanka’s impressive innings of 67 runs off 41 balls, alongside Kusal Perera’s unbeaten 53 off 45 balls, led Sri Lanka to a formidable total of 196-5, with only Jimmy Neesham (2-30) and Ish Sodhi (0-33) managing to avoid conceding runs among the three frontline seamers.
Despite the challenging target, Daryl Mitchell’s impressive 66 off 44 balls and Rachin Ravindra’s valuable cameo of 26 off 13 balls helped set up Ish Sodhi’s heroics, culminating in a dramatic tie.
The game had started off with Adam Milne finding swing and taking out Pathum Nissanka on the first ball of the innings, aided by a faint edge that was revealed through Tom Latham’s review. The run-fest that followed was unexpected.
