Toss Sri Lanka chose to bowl vs New Zealand
The hosts have named an unchanged XI, but will want more from their top order after Sri Lanka had ripped through it in the first T20I. Mitchell Santner said he feels the pitch has lost a bit of the green tinge that was present in the first game, while he was also weary of the impact the wind might play on the game.
Charith Asalanka meanwhile wanted to focus on the positives, but was keen to point out the need for their batters to take a little time to get settled in the middle as well as the importance of cutting out no-balls – a comment likely directed at Matheesha Pathirana who bowled three in the first game. The visitors have also made one change with Avishka Fernando coming in for Bhanuka Rajapaksa.
In terms of the pitch and conditions, the wind is likely to be major factor while the pitch is expected to be better for batting than in the first game, with the pitch having “browned off a bit”.
New Zealand: 1 Tim Robinson, 2 Rachin Ravindra, 3 Daryl Mitchell, 4 Mark Chapman, 5 Glenn Phillips, 6 Michael Bracewell, 7 Mitchell Hay (wk), 8 Mitchell Santner (capt), 9 Matt Henry, 10 Zakary Foulkes, 11 Jacob Duffy
Sri Lanka: 1 Pathum Nissanka, 2 Kusal Mendis (wk), 3 Kusal Perera, 4 Avishka Fernando, 5 Charith Asalanka (capt), 6 Kamindu Mendis, 7 Wanindu Hasaranga, 8 Binura Fernando, 9 Maheesh Theekshana, 10 Matheesha Pathirana, 11 Nuwan Thushara