Malinga-Samaraweera Combination Proved Lethal for New Zealand

The paceman finished with a career-best 4-28 as New Zealand were dismissed for 119 chasing a 217-run target on a slow pitch in the day-night match.

Man-of-the-match Thilan Samaraweera earlier cracked a solid 104 under pressure for his maiden one-day century to help Sri Lanka post a competitive total before Malinga completed the victory under lights.

Malinga bowled opener Brendon McCullum with the second ball of his fourth over, had Jacob Oram caught behind and then bowled Nathan McCullum with the last two deliveries to send the tourists reeling at 41-6.

Grant Elliott top-scored with 41. Ian Butler (25), McCullum (14) and skipper Daniel Vettori (10) were the other batsmen to reach double-figures in a dismal batting performance.

The hosts put New Zealand under pressure when they grabbed three wickets in the opening five overs, with Nuwan Kulasekara taking two in one over and Thilan Thushara one.

Thushara was the first to strike when he trapped Jesse Ryder leg-before in his opening over. Kulasekara had Martin Guptill caught behind and then dismissed Ross Taylor in his third over.

India are the third team in the competition. Sri Lanka were struggling at 69-5 after electing to bat before Samaraweera led the fightback with a vital 127-run stand for the sixth wicket with Angelo Mathews (51).

Samaraweera, 32, smashed 10 fours in his 124-ball knock to become the oldest Sri Lankan to score a maiden one-day hundred, while Mathews hit four boundaries in his second half-century.

New Zealand paceman Shane Bond marked his return to one-day cricket with an impressive 3-43 performance off 10 overs.

The fast bowler denied Sri Lanka a sound start with two wickets in his opening spell.

Bond struck in his first over when he had former captain Mahela Jayawardene caught by Taylor in the slips.

Bond then dismissed hard-hitting opener Sanath Jayasuriya (seven) to reduce the hosts to 22-3. He conceded just nine runs in his opening five overs.

Triangular Series Started in Lanka's Favour - - Sri Lanka Thrashes New Zealand by 97 Runs

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Thilan Samaraweera's defiant century backed up by three wickets in a single over from Lasith Malinga gave Sri Lanka a crushing 97-run win over New Zealand on Tuesday in the opening match of the tri-nation cricket series which also features India.

Batting first Sri Lanka recovered from a disastrous start to reach 216-7 and later bowled the Black Caps out for just 119 in the 37th over.

Samaraweera made 104 and shared a crucial 127-run partnership with Anjelo Mathews (51) to give Sri Lanka's bowlers a competitive total to defend.

Like Sri Lanka, New Zealand made a poor start with the bat, losing their first three wickets for just seven runs.

Left-arm seamer Thilan Thushara made the initial breakthrough, trapping Jesse Ryder leg-before.

Nuwan Kulasekera had Martin Guptill caught behind by captain Kumar Sangakkara and later also trapped Ross Taylor lbw.

A brief 30-run stand between Brendon McCullum and Grant Elliot gave the tourists some hope but Malinga struck three times in the 19th over to end any chance of a New Zealand comeback.

Malinga bowled McCullum with a yorker and three balls later had Jacob Oram caught by Sangakkara. He then bowled Nathan McCullum with the last ball of the over.

Elliot top-scored for New Zealand with 41 runs. Malinga was the pick of the bowlers, finishing with figures of 4-28.

Earlier, Sangakkara won the toss and elected to bat first, but his openers failed and the middle order crumbled under pressure as the hosts lost five wickets for 69 runs.

Samaraweera then came to the crease with his team struggling on 22-3 and, despite losing two batting partners early, he settled down with Mathews for a record stand for the sixth wicket between the two sides.

Samaraweera, who faced 124 balls and hit 10 boundaries, has long been regarded as a test specialist and had not been considered for limited-over matches for almost four years.

Mathews brought up his second limited-overs fifty off 60 balls including four boundaries.

Thilan Samaraweera's Ton Rescued Sri Lanka Fram A Total Collapse - - Modest Target of 217 for New Zealand

Sri Lanka, Sept 8 (Reuters) - Thilan Samaraweera scored a maiden century to lift Sri Lanka to 216-7 at the end of their innings in a one-day international against New Zealand on Tuesday.

Samaraweera rescued Sri Lanka after an early collapse that had left them in deep trouble on 69 for five, scoring 104 from 124 balls with ten boundaries.

The 32-year-old right-hander shared a 127-run stand for the sixth wicket with all rounder Angelo Mathews, who scored 51 from 60 balls with four boundaries.

Shane Bond celebrated his return to one-day international cricket with three for 43 from his 10 overs.

Fellow pace bowler Ian Butler claimed two for 55.

Sri Lanka won an early advantage by winning the toss at a venue that heavily favours the side batting first.

However, opener Tillakaratne Dilshan (four) was bowled in the first over by Darryl Tuffey and Bond had Mahela Jayawardene caught at slip third ball.

Veteran Sanath Jayasuriya (seven) was caught at third man and skipper Kumar Sangakkara was caught off a leading edge.

The game is the first in a four-match tri-series also involving India.

Tuffey and Bond Enjoyed Thier Come Back As Lankans Lose Their Wickets at Regular Intervals

Shane Bond and Daryl Tuffey celebrated their return to one-day cricket by sharing crucial breakthroughs as New Zealand made a stunning start to their Tri-Series opener against Sri Lanka today.

Tuffey, not even in the squad until Kyle Mills was rested due to illness, and Bond rocked Sri Lanka's top order to negate Daniel Vettori's loss of a supposedly crucial toss at R Premadasa Stadium.

The Auckland right armer revived his penchant for taking early wickets when his sixth ball cannoned off the inside edge of the dangerous Tillakaratne Dilshan's bat and on to the stumps to give New Zealand the perfect start a delivery after the opener's other inside edge went for four.

Bond, who had also not represented New Zealand at ODI level since the 2007 World Cup, then struck with his fourth ball of the second over when Mahela Jayawardene snicked to Ross Taylor at first slip for a two-ball duck.

Sri Lanka were five for two 10 balls into their innings and their plight then worsened as veteran Sanath Jayasuriya's form slump continued when a top edged cut shot flew straight to third seamer Ian Butler at third man.

Under scrutiny after scoring just 10 runs in three previous innings against the tourists, the 40-year-old departed for seven off 20 balls as Sri Lanka subsided to 22 for three in the eighth over.

Bond, taken for 59 by Sri Lanka during the 2007 World Cup semi-final defeat, conceded just nine for his first five over spell - underlining the potency New Zealand has been missing since his defection to the Indian Cricket League (ICL).