Sri Lanka’s death bowling nearly pulled it back from the brink, but New Zealand kept their cool to secure an ultimately comfortable four-wicket win in the third and final T20I in Queenstown and with it a 2-1 series victory.
Tim Seifert anchored a successful chase of 183 with his 48-ball 88, which trumped Kusal Mendis’ 73 off 43 earlier in the day, though Seifert might not have imagined how tense the finish would get when he was dismissed with his side needing just 29 from 23 deliveries with seven wickets in hand.
Overs 17 to 19 would go for just 19 runs, leaving the hosts needing ten to win off the last over. A six off the first delivery seemed to have settled matters but Sri Lanka would land a team hat-trick off the next three balls, with Lahiru Kumara picking up two wickets and effecting a run out.
They might have made it four from four too, but Kumara missed an almost identical run-out chance, allowing New Zealand to steal a bye to the keeper. Rachin Ravindra then struck the winning runs a ball later, as New Zealand breathed a collective sigh of relief. For Sri Lanka, it’s a disappointing end to a tough tour.
