New Zealand thrash Sri Lanka with Guptill, Munro blitz

He had a hard act to follow when he came to the wicket with Guptill just out for 63 after an 89-run opening partnership with Kane Williamson.

All the Sri Lankan bowlers took a huge beating by the Black Caps as none of them had an economy rate of less than 11.

Martin Guptill hit the fastest half-century by a New Zealand batsman, only for Colin Munro to better it moments later as the hosts needed just 10 overs to rout Sri Lanka by nine wickets in their Twenty20 match on Sunday, winning both matches of the series.

Highlights from Sri Lanka’s innings at Eden park.

Munro did his chances no harm with the bat, scoring 36 while batting at No 3, but his medium pace bowling was too full and did not put pressure on the Sri Lankan batsmen as he conceded 17 runs in two overs.

Munro has etched his name onto the record books as the scorer of the second fastest T20I fifty, the third fastest T20 fifty, and the fastest T20 fifty by any Kiwi.

It beat the record set earlier in the inning by opener Martin Guptill, whose own half-century had taken 19 balls, four fewer than the mark Guptill had shared with Aaron Redmond.

Kane Williamson of New Zealand looks on during the second T20 cricket match between New Zealand and …

“I thought it would be a bit of a scrap on that wicket as it was holding up a fraction, but it didn’t seem to be a problem for those two guys and they cleared the ropes consistently”, he said.

Elliott, who in the Black Caps’ last appearance on Eden Park hit the winning six in the epic World Cup semi-final against South Africa in March, again played a major hand.

New Zealand’s Trent Boult celebrates after dismissing Sri Lanka’s Shehan Jayasuriya during their first Twenty20 match at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui on Thursday.

Mathews played superbly to try and help his side finish their tour on a high, but 60 balls later that possibility was swiftly swept aside.