*Official* New Zealand in Sri Lanka

[Nishan]

Fri Aug 7 - Sun Aug 9
10:00 local | 04:30 GMT
16:30 NZST Sri Lanka Cricket Development XI v New Zealanders
Colts Cricket Club Ground, Colombo 27 - 28° C Forecast Scattered Thunderstorms

Click here for 10-day-Forecast


Wed Aug 12 - Fri Aug 14
10:00 local | 04:30 GMT
16:30 NZST Sri Lanka Cricket XI v New Zealanders
Nondescripts Cricket Club Ground, Colombo N/A

Tue Aug 18 - Sat Aug 22
10:00 local | 04:30 GMT
16:30 NZST 1st Test - Sri Lanka v New Zealand
Galle International Stadium N/A

Wed Aug 26 - Sun Aug 30
10:00 local | 04:30 GMT
16:30 NZST 2nd Test - Sri Lanka v New Zealand
Sinhalese Sports Club Ground, Colombo N/A

Wed Sep 2
19:00 local | 13:30 GMT
01:30 NZST +1d 1st T20I - Sri Lanka v New Zealand
R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo N/A

Fri Sep 4
19:00 local | 13:30 GMT
01:30 NZST +1d 2nd T20I - Sri Lanka v New Zealand
R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo N/A

Sun Sep 6
10:00 local | 04:30 GMT
16:30 NZST Sri Lanka A v New Zealanders
Sinhalese Sports Club Ground, Colombo N/A

Tue Sep 8
10:00 local | 04:30 GMT
16:30 NZST Sri Lanka v New Zealand
R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo N/A

Sat Sep 12
10:00 local | 04:30 GMT
16:30 NZST India v New Zealand
R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo N/A

Wed Sep 16
09:45 GMT
21:45 NZST Sri Lankan XI v New Zealanders (This match is not confirmed yet)
Venue TBC



Suprising noone has started this yet or have they?

should be intersting to see how NZ tackle the spinners, and cant wait to see shane bond again at the bowling crease.

SL have some tough selections to make they should pick Mendis but that would mean dropping hearth who had a fine series against Pakistan. 2 Tests rather had 3 tbh.

also 2 warm ups which is good

[Woodster]

Yes 2 warm-ups is good for NZ, but another two-Test series, which makes these things relatively pointless, why is it not at least three Tests?!

I'm quite looking forward to this series, I have high hopes for the NZ line-up, the potential in the batting especially. However, I expect they'll find this a very tough trip and while I expect it to be competitive, I do think SL will win them both, but that's just my opinion.

It will be a big learning curve for Flynn, Taylor, and Ryder in NZ's middle order, and I expect Sangakkara, Jayawardene and Samaraweera to outbat NZ's trio and set up SL's victories. Vettori and Patel are obviously two very good spinners, Vettori one of the best, but these Sri Lankans can play spin well and may counter their threat.

Some late middle order depth for NZ with Oram, McCullum and Vettori there, and their experience may be crucial at times when they need to re-build. Should be a decent series in its own right, just such a shame it's over before it gets started.

[Flem274*]

I think our batting, as ever, will pendulum between being very good and being very, very bad. Flynn has his work cut out for him because lets face it, Cumming/McIntosh won't last long so he'll have a fun job at three.

The bowlers, well Martin is Martin, he bowls the same everywhere now. I expect him to get 3/90 style figures. Tuffey has bowled very well on the subcontinent before so hopefuly he repeats it. O'Brien will be as consistently good as ever, and probably be the standout seamer unless Tuffey's return to test cricket is successful immediately.

I think we'll bat better as the series progresses. Expect our first test batting innings to be woeful with improvement in the second test.

[Polo23]

You reckon Tuffey will get the nod in the test side? I was thinking we will lineup something like this:

Cumming/McIntosh (probably dependent on warm-up form)
Guptill
Flynn
Taylor
Ryder
McCullum
Oram
Vettori
Patel
O'Brien
Martin

Oram and Ryder doing the 3rd seamers job. I really can't see a spot for Tuffey unless for some reason Patel doesn't play or he is preferred over Martin, which at the moment I don't see happening.

I would like to see him in the side however, so I hope he goes well in the warm ups.

[James]

Interesting side Polo, personally I can't see them going O'Brien and Martin in the same team again due to batting ability and that they're the same sort of bowlers. Tuffey will play in place of one of those two I predict.

[Polo23]

I don't think the selectors will worry about that to be honest. Just a hunch I guess. If that is the case however, I hope it isn't O'Brien who is left out of the team, he has been fantastic over the last 18 months or so in tests.

[Prince EWS]

Yeah, I don't think the selectors will start picking their team based on the strength of their #10 batting. It's not like Tuffey's an allrounder.

[James]

Originally Posted by Polo23

I don't think the selectors will worry about that to be honest. Just a hunch I guess. If that is the case however, I hope it isn't O'Brien who is left out of the team, he has been fantastic over the last 18 months or so in tests.

Yeah, I would play both myself, but can't see the selectors doing that. Hopefully I'll be proved wrong, although it would be interesting to see how Tuffey goes in the Test arena again.

[Athlai]

O'Brien is an interesting batsman, while he isn't what you would say a genuine batsman due to his poor ability to score runs, he does however have a solid defensive technique. The guy can stick arond which is good news.

That and Jeets recently scored a FC ton.

[Polo23]

O'Brien has balls, while he looks absolutely ****house when batting, at least he is prepared to get in line and wear a few on the body if that is what the team needs. Unlike Chris Martin, who stands a foot outside leg and couldn't hit a beach ball.

[Athlai]

I reckon O'Brien can stick around with a genuine batsman and even if Jeets is the man at the other end he is certainly no mug with the bat.

[Nishan]

in their warm up game the Kiwis will come up against a young side full of third tear players as well as u-19 stars. Prassana Jawardena is making his return after injury, such a shame NZ is playing tri series instead of a proper 3 test 5 ODI tour as planned. India dicates the dollars thats why the change.

Very minimal coverage so far, i havent seen many pictures even on cricinfo. I expect things to get better, Hopefully the black caps good performance can somehow put peoples mind off the All blacks.

[Flem274*]

The difference between O'Brien and Martin as bowlers is that O'Brien always bowls several "**** you, try not get out to this bitch" balls, he can actualy tear into teams AND be a workhorse. Martin, whilst still capable of absolute pearls, has traded his old explosiveness for consistency, and is workhorse third seamer material. This is no bad thing, the old Martin drove me mad because outside NZ and SA, he was hopeless. But O'Brien should get the nod over Martin if it comes down to it (say Tuffey rapes batsmen in the warm ups) because O'Brien can make things happen, he should get in, especially since we're in the subcontinent. However its all hypothetical, because we'll never drop Martin and O'Brien has 18 months of damn good performance behind him which Tuffey doesn't have.

If Patel is ineffective though, I'd go three seamers. No point going two spinners if one is being crap. Quietly confident Patel and Vettori will deal to any lesser SL batsmen, but the big guns may be a bit too much in their own country.

[cowboysfan]

hope the kiwis can hang on and get a draw or even win one of the test matches but looks like a tall order for them.

[DIRK-NANNES]

Tuffey's been a bit wayward so far in the warm up, has a wicket already though.
Marto on the other hand has been as tight as a duck's backside and too has a wicket.

EDIT: Now Oram has one too whilst taking tightness to the next level