Cricket: Tourists gain the early honours

KANDY - New Zealand fought back to take the honours in the opening session on the third day of the second test against Sri Lanka in Kandy today.

After a dour 150 minutes when the spinners gained useful turn and the pacemen got the ball to play tricks on the cracking surface, New Zealand reached 171 for five in their first innings.

Jacob Oram was leading the way in just his fourth test with a polished unbeaten 50, adding an unbroken 62 with Robbie Hart after Mark Richardson reached yet another test half-century. It was more a case of survival rather than run-scoring as the Sri Lankan bowlers provided a stern test on a pitch becoming ever more variable.

New Zealand added 96 runs in 41 overs after resuming at a shaky 75 for four as play at last got under way on time.

Richardson and Oram laboured the first 20 overs for 34 runs as a fired-up Chaminda Vaas bowled a rapid first spell of largely short-pitched deliveries which had the batsmen hopping about.

Richardson, resuming on 32, doused the threat of spinner Muttiah Muralitharan and brought up his 15th half-century in his 24th test when he drove Muralitharan through cover and mid-off for back-to-back boundaries.

His half-century took 211 minutes and he faced 176 balls, including eight fours.

Richardson, though, having seen off Muralitharan's threat, perished soon afterwards for 55 with the introduction of legspinner Kaushalya Lokuarachchi when he pushed forward and edged a simple bat-pad catch to short leg.

- NZPA