Sri Lanka's WTC Hopes Soar After Dominant New Zealand Series Win

Sri Lanka's remarkable series victory over New Zealand has ignited hopes of a World Test Championship (WTC) final berth next year. Currently ranked third behind Australia and India, Sri Lanka trails Australia by a mere 6.94 percentage points.

Captain Dhananjaya de Silva, who has guided Sri Lanka to their best Test year since 2006, remains cautious. "We're only looking at it from one match to another," he said. "If you look too far ahead, you can miss out on what's immediately important."

Despite their impressive performance, Sri Lanka faces a challenging tour of South Africa in November-December. However, de Silva believes that focusing on the present will ultimately lead to success.

One of the standout performers in the series was Kamindu Mendis, who narrowly missed out on a double century in the first innings. De Silva's decision to declare with Mendis 18 runs short raised questions, but the captain explained that it was necessary to give Kusal Mendis an opportunity to score a century.

Mendis supported his captain's decision, acknowledging that the team's total was already substantial and that batting in the final hour at Galle is challenging.

Another key contributor was debutant Nishan Peiris, who claimed nine wickets with his offspin. De Silva praised Peiris' ability to keep the economy rate low, which put pressure on New Zealand.

Sri Lanka's six Test wins this year have propelled them to fifth in the rankings. De Silva attributes this success to the team's hard work and improved bench strength. "We have got the right team makeup now," he said. "And now we also have combinations that can work on any surface, both at home and overseas."

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