Sri Lanka coast to 10-wicket Test win after New Zealand collapse

Rangana Herath ran riot against New Zealand to take 11 wickets and guide Sri Lanka to a comfortable victory in Galle.

Sri Lanka bowler Rangana Herath celebrates with Thilan Samaraweera after taking another wicket against New Zealand

Rangana Herath wreaked havoc on New Zealand as he took 11 wickets to guide Sri Lanka to a 10-wicket victory after just three days of the first Test in Galle.

Having taken five wickets in the first innings, Herath went one better in the second with figures of six for 43 off 18 overs, his haul coming at an overall cost of 108 runs.

It was the bedrock of the Sri Lanka victory as New Zealand continued their miserable form, underlined by their woeful second-innings effort of 118 in which Daniel Flynn top-scored with just 20.

Sri Lanka were given a run chase of just 93 for a third-day victory which was reached with ease with Tharanga Paranavitana and debutant Dimuth Karunaratne quickly polishing off the runs in 18.3 overs.

Karunaratne was seemingly spraying boundaries at will in an innings more reminiscent of Twenty20 cricket, his unbeaten run-a-ball 60 including nine fours.

Fittingly, his ninth boundary produced the winning runs as he swivelled at the crease and pulled his shot along the ground from Doug Bracewell's short delivery.

New Zealand lost a two-Test series to India in the summer having already been beaten by the West Indies earlier in the year.

Paranavitana was more conservative than Karunaratne, making 31 off 51 balls with three fours and one six.

It was notable Tim Southee did not bowl after taking four wickets in the first innings, one of the few tourists - along with Brendon McCullum and Flynn - to emerge with any credit.

Having resumed on 13 for one, Martin Guptill and Kane Williamson had moved the score on to 35 when the former was bowled by Nuwan Kulasekara after having made just 13 off 45 deliveries.

Williamson became Kulasekara's second victim of the day, caught by Prasanna Jayawardene diving to his left having made only 10 with just 46 runs on the board.

Herath then struck for the first time today, and the second in the innings, when he trapped Ross Taylor lbw for 18.

James Franklin was next to go, caught in a tangle as the ball went between the batsman's legs, hitting Jayawardene in the chest and deflecting on to the stumps and knocking a bail off before Franklin could make it back.

His departure for just two and with the score on 70 heralded the loss of three wickets for just nine runs.

Flynn (20) and Bracewell (nought) were then removed by Herath in successive balls with Southee stumped by Jayawardene for 16 off the bowling of Suraj Randiv immediately before lunch, leaving New Zealand reeling on 96 for eight.

The break brought little respite with Jeetan Patel falling for a duck four deliveries into the second session, a flick to the on side resulting in the ball being wedged between Karunaratne's legs off the bowling of Herath.

From 97 for nine, Kruger van Wyk and Trent Boult moved the score on to 118 with the latter hitting Randiv for successive sixes before he was caught by Mahela Jayawardene off Randiv to give Sri Lanka a run chase of 93.

New Zealand were broken with Paranavitana and Karunaratne easing the side to victory.