New Zealand all-rounder Nathan Smith produced an acrobatic effort during the second ODI against Sri Lanka at Seddon Park in Hamilton on Wednesday, January 8. in the recent match.
New Zealand were asked to bat first in a rain-affected match which was reduced to 37 overs. They posted a total of 255/9 with Rachin Ravindra (79 off 63) and Mark Chapman (62 off 52) scoring fifties. Maheesh Theekshana (4/44) and Wanindu Hasaranga (2/39) were the top bowlers for the Sri Lankan team.
Sri Lanka's chase got off to a poor start against New Zealand
Sri Lanka's run got off to a poor start as the New Zealand pacers exploited the conditions, using swing, seam and bounce to unsettle the Sri Lankan top order. Both openers failed and Kusal Mendis was dismissed cheaply. A bizarre over by Charith Asalanka left them reeling at 22/4 in the power play of the run chase.
Kamindu Mendis fought back with 64 off 66 balls, including five fours and three sixes. He formed important partnerships, adding 57 runs with Janith Liyanage (22 off 31) for the fifth wicket and 47 with Chamindu Wickramasinghe (17 off 27). However, he was dismissed in the 29th over of the chase.
Watch: Nathan Smith takes a stunner to the boundary to dismiss Eshan Malinga
The incident occurred on the last ball of the 29th over of the Sri Lankan innings. Eshan Malinga tried to send William O'Rourke's short and wide delivery over the keeper to score. However, the ball flew off the line of the bat to good third man where Nathan Smith was sitting.
Nathan Smith, who fouled earlier in the day, redeemed himself by diving horizontally and grabbing the ball with both hands just before it hit the ground. This stunning effort was hailed as a potential series clincher. Malinga was dismissed for 4 runs off 5 balls which included a boundary.
The Black Caps took to their social media account on X (formerly known as Twitter) to share the incredible catch with the caption: “Nathan Smith!
Here's video of Nathan Smith's acrobatic field goal effort:
Nathan Smith! A shout at the Seddon Park boundary to dismiss Eshan Malinga 🔥 #NZvSL #CricketNation pic.twitter.com/sQKm8aS07F
— BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) January 8, 2025
Good playing time for the boys – Mitchell Santner
Sri Lanka were bowled out for 142 runs, leading to New Zealand securing the three-match ODI series with one match to spare. New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner praised his team's performance.
“We opened really well, lost wickets in the middle but the seamers did their job on a wicket that offered little. We knew we had to bowl well at the start, credit to Theekshana and he bowled wide and made us bat bigger. and they stuck to their line and their lengths for a long time and made it challenging for us to be challenging for the guys,” Santner said.
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