Cricket: Black Caps score by shifting Colombo test

Conventional wisdom would suggest that New Zealand wins in Sri Lanka will be difficult to come by, but it seems they might have chalked up a minor victory before leaving.

New Zealand Cricket general manager of cricket Geoff Allott has successfully lobbied the home board to take the first test out of Colombo and down the coast to Galle.

Conditions at Galle are expected to be less oppressive and more suited to seam bowling.

"We're expecting it to be four or five degrees cooler there," Allott said. "With the cooling sea breezes, we see it as the ideal way to acclimatise to playing test cricket in Sri Lanka."

New Zealand was to have been based in Colombo for the entirety of the five-week tour. Allott and players' association boss Heath Mills recognised the potential for the players to go stir crazy, couped up in the same hotel with little opportunity to leave the compound in an extremely security-conscious country.

"It was really important for us to try to get the players out of Colombo for this period," Allott said.

Then there was the added bonus of seeing the way the Galle pitch played as Sri Lanka beat Pakistan there in the first test of their series. "We didn't want to make too much noise about that," Allott admitted, "but we were quietly pleased to see the ball do a bit and the seamers dominate the wickets."

Colombo's wickets - there are three test grounds in the city and New Zealand will be playing at the Sinhalese Cricket Club - tend to favour the spinners and trying to keep the likes of Ajantha Mendis and Muttiah Muralitharan at bay for two tests in succession would be difficult.

New Zealand's five-match bilateral ODI series in Sri Lanka has been replaced by a tri-series also featuring India that will run from September 8-14. The four-game tournament had been firmed up last month during the ICC meeting at Lord's.

After the conclusion of the tri-series, all three teams will head to South Africa for the Champions Trophy.