Buoyant Sri Lanka Seek a Kiwi Whitewash, NZ Ready for Challenge

Colombo: Kumar Sangakkara's Sri Lanka will have more than just a series win at stake when they take on New Zealand in the second and final cricket Test from Wednesday.

New Zealand will field a full-strength team in Wednesday's second cricket Test against Sri Lanka after the tourists were plagued by a stomach bug in the first match.

New Zealand had 13 of their 15 players laid low by upset stomachs and viral fever during the first Test in Galle last week, which Sri Lanka won by 202 runs to take the lead in the two-match series.

Skipper Daniel Vettori said the entire squad had trained over the past two days and his players were gearing up for a better show in the final Test at the Sinhalese sports club.

Kiwis will decide on the line-up before the toss. It is important to get big scores.

New Zealand will probably make one change from the team that lost in Galle, with fast bowler Daryl Tuffey expected to replace seamer Iain O'Brien.

Vettori 93-Test veteran was New Zealand's star performer in Galle, with five wickets and knocks of 42 and 67 and is again expected to lead from the front.

Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara said he was wary of a New Zealand backlash, saying he had a lot of respect for their fighting qualities.

"We are expecting a very tough response from New Zealand," he said. "I think they are going to come back very strongly and try to win this Test, so that they have something to take back home.

"For us, we are going all out to win this game and win the series."

Sri Lanka, who are now joint second with India in the official Test rankings, will hold the number two position on their own behind South Africa if they win the series 2-0.

But Sangakkara appeared less excited at the rankings, saying it was more important to perform consistently.

"The number two position probably reflects how well we are playing, but we are not number one, and that means we have a lot more to achieve to get there," he said.

All-rounder Angelo Mathews was ruled out of the match with a hamstring strain picked up in Galle and he will be replaced by batsman Chamara Kapugedera, Sangakkara said.

Team news

New Zealand (likely): Tim McIntosh, Martin Guptill, Jesse Ryder, Ross Taylor, Daniel Flynn, Brendon McCullum, Jacob Oram, Daniel Vettori (capt), Daryl Tuffey, Jeetan Patel, Chris Martin.

Sri Lanka (likely): Tharanga Paranavitana, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara (capt), Mahela Jayawardene, Thilan Samaraweera, Chamara Kapugedera, Muttiah Muralitharan, Thilan Thushara, Nuwan Kulasekara, Prasanna Jayawardene, Ajanta Mendis.

Pitch and conditions
Sangakkara's statement, "We would love to play three spinners on this track," sums up how this pitch is expected to play. Traditionally, though, it isn't a pitch that turns into a minefield; in the four of previous six Tests teams have ended the final day on 391 for 4, 250 for 3, 474, and 337 for 4.

The weather forecast for the game isn't too good, with heavy rain expected through the week.

Stats & Trivia

• Vettori needs just two more wickets to become only the ninth player in history to achieve the all-rounder's double of 3,000 runs and 300 wickets.
• Sri Lanka have lost only one of their last fifteen Tests at the Sinhalese Sports Club ground.
• After going past Derek Underwood's haul in the first Test, Daniel Vettori is the leading wicket-taker among left-arm spinners. He needs two more to complete the double of 3000 runs and 300 wickets.
• Mahela Jayawardene's previous seven innings at the SSC: 82, 374, 127, 195, 136, 79, 2.

Match facts
Wednesday August 26 - Sunday August 30, 2009
Start time 10.00 local, 04.30GMT

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