Mon Sep 23 09:12:08 UTC 2024: ## Sri Lanka Stun New Zealand in Thriller, Climb to Third in WTC Table
**Galle, Sri Lanka:** Sri Lanka have pulled off a sensational victory against New Zealand in the first Test at Galle, winning by 63 runs and climbing to third place in the 2023-25 World Test Championship table.
The hosts, batting first, posted 305 runs before narrowly conceding a 35-run lead to the Black Caps. Sri Lanka then put up a strong 309 in their second innings, with fifties from Dimuth Karunaratne, Dinesh Chandimal, and Angelo Mathews.
New Zealand were set a target of 274 for victory, but found themselves struggling at 96-6. A valiant 92 from Rachin Ravindra kept the Kiwis in the game, but Sri Lanka’s bowlers kept taking wickets.
Heading into Monday morning, New Zealand needed 68 runs with two wickets in hand. However, Prabath Jayasuriya struck twice in quick succession, dismissing Ravindra and William O’Rourke, handing Sri Lanka a memorable win.
This victory has boosted Sri Lanka’s points percentage to 50, moving them ahead of Bangladesh to third place in the WTC table. They now have 48 points from eight Tests.
New Zealand, on the other hand, have slipped to fourth position with a points percentage of 42.85, having won three of their seven Tests in the cycle.
The second Test of the series is set to begin on September 26 at the same venue.
First Piper 