WT20, Group B: NZ v SL

The match winner A wicket, three catches and the winning runs make Nathan McCullum the obvious choice as Man of the Match. It's been a great start to the competition, be sure to join us shortly for game two to see if Kieron Pollard can continue his IPL carnage as the hosts take on Ireland.

Two to look out for The momentum ebbed and flowed and there will be aspects to work on for both teams. The Sri Lankans could have been sharper in the field and it was surprising not to see Mendis get a fourth over. New Zealand ultimately got home but nearly threw it away with some questionable running and Jesse Ryder chucking his wicket when he was looking threatening. Both these teams, especially on the slow, low wickets of the Caribbean, have shown that they have potential to be major players in this year's tournament.

McCullum Cameo Nathan McCullum 16 not out off 6 deliveries and a glorious six off Lasith Malinga to win the game, what a cracker to start the tournament.

Over 20 Malinga 1-1b-4-W-6 139-8 - Hysterical scenes on the second ball of the over, the batsmen attempting a bye to Sangakkara escape with Malinga rolling the ball wide of the easiest of run out chances!Thrid ball, four. Great stroke from McCullum! Wicket!Vettori turns for a crazy second run and is well short of his ground, so silly, especially when Vettori could have settled for one and kept the strike. It matters not, all the talk of Brendan McCullum, but it's his brother Nathan who's pulled it off with a six off the penultimate ball! New Zealand win by two wickets!

Over 19 Welegedara W-1,W-1-4-1-3 126-7 - Why has Sangakkara brought on the expensive Welegedara, and brought fine leg up into the circle? No room for error. But the bowler is left arm, fast and straight and gets the massive Wicket! of Oram! cleaned bowled! Hopkins is in, but doesn't stay long, one ball in fact, with an attempted second run leaving him well short of his ground, Sri Lanka finally have their run out with Dilshan making a contribution. Vettori whips one for four, then McCullum picks off three...It's ten needed from the last Malinga bowled over...

Over 18 Malinga 0-1-1-2-1-1 116-5 - The death-bowling specialist is doing it again with full and fast bowling keeping the runs to ones and twos. It's shaping up for a epic last over, with Malinga bowling it in this form the Kiwi pair will want to take as many as they can from the penultimate over. 20 required off two overs.

Over 17 Mendis 1-W-1-1-6-6 110-5- Wicket!Sri Lanka have a box of tricks, but Mendis instead bowls one dead straight, embarrassing Styris. Oram's back in action, and wow can hit it. The big man smashes a huuuge Six! into the second tier. A second hit beyond the ropes, one handed, catches the breeze to just clear the long-on fielder. Game on, 26 from 18...

Over 16 Malinga 1-1-2-1-1-1 95-4 - Malinga's back! And will no doubt bowl through to the end. Dan Vettori has made up his mind as to how to approach Malinga, dancing to the offside and picking up runs to his legs, with four men on the offside fence. A full straight Malinga yorker will do for Vettori's dancing here. The Kiwi skipper does well to make his ground for two, surviving a close run out call. 41 from 24...the run rate is over 10 for the first time.

Over 15 Muralitharan - 1-W-0-1-0-1 88-4 - Another sharp chance gone down in the field! Jayawardene giving Styris a second life off an uppish backfoot drive. But Wicket! Taylor skies to Mathews who takes a smart catch into the sun, not s great shot with the length not quite there for a sweep. Just two from the over and that's tightened the skrews. two for 25 for Murali. The skipper is in for New Zealand with his side short of 48 runs in 30 balls...

Over 14 Jayasuriya 1-1-0-1-0-1 85-3 An impressive spell from the MP, his four overs going for just 17. He will be an important bowler for Sri Lanka in the tournament on these slow wickets. 51 required from 36...

Over 13 Mendis 2-0-0-0-6-0 73-3 - There is a slip in for Mendis and Scotty Styris is being frustrated, he's able to ease the pressure with a heavy over the legside fence, it really was a heavy, that the only way to describe it. 55 needed from 42 now...

Over 12 Jayasuriya 0-1-1-1-1-0 75-3 - Jayasuriya is wasting no time in bowling his spell. Just four from that over and it's 61 needed from 46 balls.

Over 11 Muralitharan 0-1-1-1-0-1 71-3 - The oldest man at the tournament is proving his worth in the field aswell with an athletic stop at short fine leg. New men Styris and Taylor are just happy to pick up singles for now.

Over 10 Jayasuriya 0-1-0-0-W-1 67-3 Wicket! Here come Sri Lanka! Jayasuriya bowls a peach of a quicker delivery, the 96km per hour yorker getting through Guptil's defence. It's anyone's game. Jayasuriya is flying through his overs.

Over 9 Muralitharan 6-0-W-1-1-1 65-2 - One ball around the wicket for Murali doesn't work with the ball disappearing over cow's for six, so he switches back over the wicket. Ryder then does pay for trying to be a bit too cute, an attempted glide has him Bowled! by the Smiling Assasin. Not necessary from Ryder, 42 from 27 for him. Taylor is the new man in.

Over 8 Jayasuriya 1-1-2-0-2-1 56-1 - Specialist bowler and member of parliament Sanath Jayasuriya is on to wind his arm around. The Kiwi's are generally looking happy to knock around one's and two's with the fielding side starting to get slightly ratty with each other. Just proper cricket needed, not the extravagant step inside tried by Ryder, which he gets away with.

Over 7 Muralitharan 0-2-4-0-2-1 49-1 - The fielding restrictions are done and Murali has a tight off-side field to Ryder with men back on the legside fence, the lefthander though hits one sweetly enough down the ground and beats long-on for four. Good cricket from the New Zealand pair who are easing towards the total. Sri Lanka once again miss a great chance for a run out with debutant Chandimal throwing to the wrong end.

Over 6 Mendis 1-1-1-0-1-1 40-1 - A fairly suicidal run from the Kiwi pair is not punished by Malinga in the offside field, chance missed for the Sri Lankans. New Zealand happy to just knock it around for single at this stage.

Magic Spray Guptil's taken a knock from a Malinga bouncer and the magic is spray is out on his elbow...Mr Lover-lover Shaggy takes the opportunity to keep the crowd, and a certain David Lloyd, entertained.

Over 5 Malinga 6-0-0-2-0-0 35-1 - Malinga gets the treatment first up, Guptil hitting through the line and down the ground for Six. A good comeback from 'Slinger' Malinga then deceives Guptil with a couple of shorter slower balls.

Over 4 Mendis 1-1-0-1-4-2 27-1 - Just one ball and Mendis has been warned but umpire Davis to avoid running on the wicket. A half-chance, or maybe twwo-thirds-of a chance goes a-begging with Dilshan at full stretch missing out on an upward drive from Guptil. A swept boundary from Ryder means it's nine from Mendis' first over.

Over 3 Mathews 0-1-6-0-0-0 18-1 - Mathews is mixing up his pace effectively with Kumar Sangakkara standing up to the stumps, the skipper has set a heavy off-side field, and Ryder takes no notice as he comfortably punches for SIX over long-on, this man is going to be key for the Black Caps. A great response from Mathews sees his variation getting the measure of Ryder.

Over 2 Welegedara 4-1-0-w-4-1-0 11-1 - A loose one down the legside first up gets picked off by Ryder for four, a convincing lbw appeal against Guptil is then followed by more looseness from the leftarm bowler, which Guptil punishes with a boundary down the ground.

Over 1 Mathews 0-0-0-W-0-0 0-1 - It's Mathews who opens the bowling for Sri Lanka, who have battled to find new ball bowlers, and WICKET! he has McCullum caught without scoring. Two more dot balls to new man Guptil and it's the perfect start for Sri Lanka.

Here's New Zealand's reply... Jesse Ryder returns for the Kiwi's and Brendan McCullum will open with him, McCullum having represented his country in every one of their 34 Twenty20 internationals.

Sri Lanka Finish On 135 For Six How worse off they could have been were it not for Jayawardene, who epitomised the idea of an innings' backbone. As was predicted, the slower bowlers had the biggest say on proceedings and this is a very gettable tally for the Kiwis. Stick around for the entertaining chase.

Over 20 Bond 0-1-6-W-0-W 135-6 - Rather than McCullum, Bond or Oram, Vettori gives pace ace Bond the responsibility of delivering the final six balls of the Sri Lankan innings. He, inexplicably, gets away with a wide to begin with and I have to wonder if umpire Davis had his eyes open there. Next up, Mathews skews a single to deep third man, after which Kapugedera goes high and hard to spank a full toss over cover for six - the fourth of the match to accompany nine fours. Wicket! Kapugedera tries more of the same but doesn't have the carry and perishes on the long-off fence, leaving Jayasuriya to stride out to the middle. He watches from the non-striker's end as Mathews as misses a sraight one, looking the fool for cross-batting one he should have played straight to. Wicket! The last ball of the innings a repeat of Kapugedera's dismisal as Mathews too does not have the carry over long-off.

Over 19 Southee W-0-1-1-1-1 128-4 - Wicket! Jayawardene appears to have picked the slower ball quite well, but hitting into the wind, he watches in despair as McCullum hangs onto a good catch on the midwicket fence. So ends a great innings, and in comes Mathews. Still no Jayasuriya, amazingly enough. Did Sri Lanka not watch the IPL final, where Mumbai sent Kieron Pollard in far too late...? Mathews or Kapugedera have no answer to a host of blockhole deliveries from Southee, who ends a truly superb day with the ball - 4-0-21-1.

Over 18 Vettori 0-1-2-2-1-0 124-3 - His usual miserly self - on an economy front, that is - Vettori returns to the attack to restrict Sri Lanka to a severe lack of boundaries. Jayawardene, meanwhile, has gone to his highest Twenty20 International score - 79 not out - beating his previous best against Ireland, who are playing later today against the Windies by the way.

Over 17 Southee 4-1-1-1-1-4 118-3 - New Zealand's answer to the out-of-favour Mark Gillespie, Southee returns to the attack for the death of the knock. Jayawardene takes to him in a flash, lacing four over backward point to kick off the over. Southee bites back with a yorker, but the former captain is up to the task and squeezes out a single. What would have been a good over ends in despair for Southee, who coughs up an ugly full toss only to have it swatted through backward square-leg courtesy the half-centurion.

Over 16 N McCullum 4-1-1-W-2-1 106-3 - Bond's one-over spell is a thing of the past as the opening bowler returns for a go at the death of the innings. He cops instant tap, with Chandimal cranking four past short midwicket for four to bring up Sri Lanka's collective century. Next delivery up, he has all the time in the world to smack a low floater to any corner but instead planks it to deep point for just one. Wicket! Jayawardene then does something similar, leaving Chandimal to perish on the long-on fence, where Taylor takes a great catch in parrying the ball away from the fence to take it at second grab. Next in is Kapugedera, watching from the non-striker's end as Jayawardene paddles a nifty two

Over 15 Oram 1-1-0-4-1-1 97-2 - It's time for one of Jayawardene or Chandimal to tee off, or at least try to. The latter tries his bets but endures a couple of mis-hits through the on-side before riding his luck for a fat edge for four over short third man to bring up the half-century partnership off 6.2 overs.

Over 14 Bond 1-1-4-1-2-0 89-2 - With the track showing that the slower bowlers are the better bet, I am surprised to see pace ace Bond back for a burst. The slower bouncer does not fool Jayawardene, who splits the gap between midwicket and square-leg to perfection for four more. The partnership is now in its 40s and has officially reached threatening proportions for New Zealand. Chandimal, meanwhile, enjoys a lifeline as Hopkins drops a miscued pull and subsequent edge down the leg-side.

Over 13 Oram 0-6-1-1-0-1 80-2 - Styris off and Oram back on and wicketkeeper Hopkins back up to the stumps. Jayawardene welcomes the big all-rounder back into the bowling fray with a fat swat over long-on, welcoming the third - and arguably biggest - six of the innings. He then chances his arm for a quick single to mid-off, who misses his shy at the non-striker's stumps to afford Jayawardene his half-ton. It's the third of his Twenty20 International career. This one has taken him 33 balls and includes four fours and two sixes.

Over 12 Vettori 2-1-1-1-2-0 71-2 - Jayawardene flat-bats a couple over the off-side before nudging a scampered single to short third man. Chandimal is left to the strike and refuses to play second fiddle to the former captain. He again takes the aerial route but has to make do with a skewed two as some poor timing over mid-off gets the better of him.

Over 11 Styris 0-0-1-1lb-2-6 64-2 -Chandimal wastes a couple of dot balls before forcing the issue with a shaky pull for one. Jayawardene then attempts the tried'n'tested 'Dilscoop' and fetched a couple of leg-byes for his hackneyed effort. Guptill, meanwhile, is forced to put in the hard hards and the dive on the point fence to stop Chandimal from fetching four through point. Chandimal has the last laugh though, smearing the second six of the day over long-on to close a pretty fruitful over for the Sri Lankans.

Over 10 Vettori 1-1-1-1-1-1 54-2 - Jayawardene and sidekick turn single upon single as Vettori drops a touch too short for his liking. Just singles will suit him fine though, as Sri Lanka bring up their collective half-ton at the halfway mark of their knock. 5.4 to the over - not exactly scorching stuff.

Over 9 Styris 0-W-0-0-3-1 48-2 - Styris said before the tournament that he is determined to make an impact rather than just make up the numbers in the Kiwi team and hot off his four-for in one of the warm-up clashes he strikes again. WIcket! In a similar fashion to Dilshan, Sangakkara is found wanting across the line, missing an attempted heave over midwicket to the straight one. Hopkins almost loses an eye as one of the bails goes rogue and off mopes the Sri Lankan captain, who is probably left to rue his decision to bat first. In comes Twenty20 International debutant Chandimal, taking in a couple of sighters before offering a nervous slap on the up and over extra cover for three.

Over 8 Vetttori 1-0-0-1-1-1 44-1 - Dan decides it's time to take matters into his own hands and resigns Oram out of the attack. Left-arm around the wicket it is, as Sangakkara and Jayawardene adjust their collective sights to the slow stuff being churned out accordingly. Boundaries, particularly sixes, have certainly dried up now.

Over 7 Southee 1-1-1lb-0-1-0 40-1 - Left-hander and right-hander keep the New Zealand fielders busy by turning the singles, behind the wicket for the most part. Ryder then gets his bulky frame to the deck in a flash to rob Jayawardene of four on the cut and it's quite possible the earth suffered a tremor. Another great over from Southee, who is repaying the selectors' choice to pick him ahead of Mills.

Over 6 Oram 4-1-0-W-0-1 36-1 - New Zealand's perennail injury worry enters the attack for the first time today to bring to an end the Powerplay, copping instant stick at the hands of Jayawardene, who times four through cover to near perfection. Top shot, indeed. A casual single leaves Dilshan to do his thang but, even with third man up in the circle, the right-hander can't beat the fielder. Wicket! A truly terrible knock from yesteryear's hero comes to an end as an ugly mow across the line to Oram's off-cutter sees the Sri Lankan miss the shot and rubberneck in despair as his stumps rattle. Off he mopes, with a mere three runs off 19 balls(!) to his name. Next in is captain Sangakkara. So ends the Powerplay.

Over 5 Southee 0-0-1-0-1-0 30-0 - Vettori yanks his spinner out of the attack and on comes seamer Southee. No fine-leg or third man in place but plenty of protection in the cover region. Brave gamble, this. Great opening over from Southee. By the way - Hopkins is doing duty behind the stumps, not McCullum.

Over 4 Bond 0-4-1-0-1lb-4 28-0 - Bond finds some startling bounce from an otherwise placid track, beating Jayawardene on the bounce before fetching four through backward point in an errant attempt to test the stalwart outside the off-stump again. Not a solitary slip in place, need I remind you. Dilshan's strike-rate, meanwhile, has crawled to tortoise-esque proportions: two runs off 13 balls. Sad, indeed. So, with his batting partner struggling, Jayawardene must take control and does exactly that with an agricultural mow through mid-on for four to close the over.

Over 3 N McCullum 0-0-1-4-1-0 18-0 - McCullum insists on approaching the right-handers from around the wicket and it's working quite nicely for the Kiwis. Dilshan tries to force the issue with a hefty slog-sweep but he can't pick the gap and settles for a single to the boundary rider. Jayawardene, meanwhile, shows that he is an absolute master on the cut, cracking four in front of point. Keen to thwart McCullum's leg-side line, the former captain dances to the on-side to force more runs through the off-side before Dilshan, again, resigns to a severe lack of placement. It's pretty clear that the Sri Lankan duo are struggling with the sluggish nature of the Guyana pitch.

Over 2 Bond 0-2-1-0-1-6 12-0 - Fresh(?) from his decent stint with the Kolkata Knight Riders in the the 2010 IPL, Bond returns to the Black Caps fold with his right-arm swing'n'speed. Jayawardene welcomes some over-pitched fodder but struggles with some timing jitters, slapping a mere two - which should have been four - over the bowler's head. He tries again, and this time around makes do with some poor timing over the head over cover for just a single. Dilshan is left to the strike and continues his quest to get off the mark before eventually doing so with a single nudged through the on-side. Happy to get away from the non-striker's end, Jayawardene celebrates by lifting the first six of the tourney high and hard over backward square-leg. Bond pays the price for pitching to short.

Over 1 N McCullum 1-1wd-0-0-0-0-0 2-0 - As promised, Vettori kicks off proceedings with a spin in the former of right-armer McCullum. After an initial delay due to an ill-positioned sightscreen at the Media Centre End, the bowler darts in a leg-side delivery which Mahela skews away for a single to offer Dilshan some early strike. He bides his time to some more leg-side line, watching with intrigue as Vettori brings in a square-leg only to have McCullum offer Dilshan width to the off-side. No runs though, as point is in the way and last year's Man of the Tournament remains on nought for the time being.

Game On Anthems, pleasantries, handshakes and all the other fanfare out the way and it's on with the show as Jayawardene and Dilshan head out to the middle, as do umpires Davis and Koertzen and the Black Caps XI.

Let's Hear From You Your opinion adds to the lifeblood of this dynamic commentary so it's only right that we avail you the opportunity to mail us your thoughts on this game, the next, or the entire tourney. Ryder's comeback to the Black Caps fold, Sri Lanka's hopes of going one better than 2009 - all and any comment welcome. Mail me at jonhenry.wilson@teamtalkmedia.co.za.

State Of The Pitch Former Windies pace ace-turned-TV commentator Ian Bishop foresees a bit of a double-paced affair, as experimentation from the groundsman sees a fair amount of grass left at the one end. Sangakkara looks forward to the track slowing down across the match.

Startings XIs Sri Lanka: Tillakaratne Dilshan, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, Sanath Jayasuriya, Chamara Kapugedera, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Lasith Malinga, Muttiah Muralitharan, Ajantha Mendis, Chanaka Welegedara pending. New Zealand: Brendon McCullum, Jesse Ryder, Martin Guptill, Ross Taylor, Scott Styris, Gareth Hopkins, Jacob Oram, Daniel Vettori, Nathan McCullum, Shane Bond, Tim Southee.

Team News Sangakkara reveals that Jayawardene and Dilshan will open the batting, while Jayasuriya is likely to come in at six. Left-arm fast bowler Chanaka Welegedara is playing, as is rookie batsman Dinesh Chandimal. Vettori says that Kyle Mills has been left out. Spinner Nathan McCullum plays instead, and will probably open the bowling. Jacob Oram is fit and in the starting XI.

Toss News from out in the middle reveals Kumar Sangakkara has triumphed in the flip of the coin and Sri Lanka will bat first.

Weather Conditions Dry and sunny in Guyana today, with a strong breeze likely to keep any potential rain at bay. Typically Caribbean, the humidity is high and the temperature sits at around 30 degrees Celsius.

Providence Stadium Ins And Outs Built in 2006 especially for the 2007 World Cup, the Providence Stadium replaced the Bourda Oval as the national stadium of Guyana.

A multi-purpose venue with a capacity of 15,000, the stadium consists of three stands and large grass banks that can hold roughly 4,000 people.

The construction of the stadium was fraught with problems, and during the World Cup itself there was trouble with crowd control at the venue. Guyana will play host to six matches during the upcoming tournament, including two games involving the host nation.

Sri Lanka Team Profile Sri Lanka have won just one of their last five Twenty20 internationals since the ICC World Twenty20 last June, but such form is irrelevant when it comes to a competition on the international stage.

Last year's finalists have traditionally thrived in major ICC tournaments and this year Twenty20 showpiece will be no different, with Sri Lanka once again appearing to have all the right ingredients to play a major part in the Caribbean.

The innovation of their batting ranks and the variation and deception of the Sri Lankan bowlers are perfectly suited to the twenty-over format. Add in a good deal of experience and a harmonious team atmosphere, and you've got yourself a well balanced outfit.

New Zealand Team Profile Hardly an international tournament goes by without New Zealand being labelled a "dark horse" and, to be honest, they never seem to disappoint, often reaching the last four before falling short at the final few hurdles.

This year's ICC World Twenty20 in the Caribbean could again be case of "always a bridesmaid, never the bride" for the Kiwis.

Paired with Sri Lanka - another team who is expected to challenge for honours - and minnows Zimbabwe, the Black Caps really shouldn't have any problems making the next round.

They should also be good enough to get through their Super Eights group and after that it's usually anyone's game. Unfortunately, no matter how good the odds are on them winning the tournament, deep down you just get the feeling Daniel Vettori won't be holding the trophy aloft come May 16.

Greetings Hello and welcome to our over-by-over coverage of the World Twenty20 Group B clash between the Kiwis and Sri Lankans at the Providence Stadium in Guyana.

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