SL vs NZ: Here's why New Zealand players are wearing black armbands in 2nd test

The 2nd SL vs NZ test got underway on Thursday at Galle.

The second test of the two-match series between hosts Sri Lanka and visitors New Zealand kicked off on Thursday morning at the Galle International Stadium.

The first test was a tight contest in which the hosts emerged victorious by 63 runs. Sri Lanka rode on left-arm spinner Prabath Jayasuriya’s brilliant bowling efforts – the spinner took nine wickets in the match – to take a series lead in Galle.

In the second test, Sri Lanka would be looking to whitewash the Kiwis, while the Black Caps would aim to bounce back and level the series.

On day 1 of the second test in Galle, New Zealand cricketers took the field while wearing black armbands.

Why are New Zealand players wearing black armbands in the 2nd SL vs NZ test?

The New Zealand cricketers are wearing black armbands to honour the passing of former team manager, NZC director & Cricket Wellington chair Ian Taylor, the board confirmed on Thursday morning.

Sri Lanka win the toss and elected to bat first in 2nd test

Sri Lanka captain Dhananjaya de Silva won the toss and opted to bat first. He confirmed that Nishan Peiris is making his test debut.

Dhananjaya de Silva said, “Pitch looks quite firm with less grass, we will bat first. We want to be better, we were short by 50-60 runs which we want to get in this Test match. (On debutant Nishan Peiris) He’s done well in the domestic season and he’s tall and gets more bounce.”

New Zealand skipper Tim Southee said, “Would have liked to bat first, but like the first Test we know if we bat well in the first innings we give ourselves a chance. Same team for us, back the guys to keep improving, just looking for consistency with the bowling and the batting needs to stand up.”

Playing XIs:

New Zealand (Playing XI): Tom Latham, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell(w), Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee(c), Ajaz Patel, William ORourke

Sri Lanka (Playing XI): Pathum Nissanka, Dimuth Karunaratne, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Kamindu Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva(c), Kusal Mendis(w), Milan Priyanath Rathnayake, Prabath Jayasuriya, Nishan Peiris, Asitha Fernando

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