New Zealand stormed to an improbable 199-run victory over England on the last day of the second test to level the series 1-1 at Headingley on Tuesday.
Earlier, New Zealand prized out three more wickets to move to the brink of a series-levelling victory as England scrambled to 206 for eight at tea.
The hosts, chasing a record 455 to win, lost five wickets in the morning and only a defiant 56 from captain Alastair Cook held up the ruthless New Zealanders who are bidding for their fifth test triumph in England.
Cook’s innings, lasting nearly four hours, ended when he was trapped lbw by part-time spinner Kane Williamson before Moeen Ali was bowled for two, shouldering arms to a ball from Matt Henry that struck his off stump.
Stuart Broad made a breezy 23 before he was bowled by Williamson.
Jos Buttler battled through the afternoon session to finish unbeaten on 40 with Mark Wood on 10.
England had resumed on 44 for no wicket and Adam Lyth failed to add to his overnight 24, feathering a swinging ball from paceman Trent Boult through to wicketkeeper Luke Ronchi.
Gary Ballance unconvincingly negotiated 25 deliveries for six runs before Boult produced a venomous full delivery that crashed into the left-hander’s stumps.
Ian Bell, on one, turned a bouncing ball from spinner Mark Craig straight into the hands of Williamson at leg-slip and Joe Root was brilliantly caught off Craig for a second-ball duck by Tom Latham at short leg.
With England’s slim hopes of victory all but over, Cook and Ben Stokes adopted a cautious approach, although the allrounder produced a couple of trademark crisp boundaries to entertain a sparse crowd on a chilly day at Headingley.
The pair added 40 for the fifth wicket but Stokes was out for 29 just before lunch, caught by Ronchi as he attempted an ambitious cut off Williamson.
England won the first test at Lord’s by 124 runs.

Brendon McCullum, the New Zealand captain, was eight not out and BJ Watling two not out. England were dismissed for 350 in reply to New Zealand’s first innings 350 to leave the scores level on the third day of the second Test at Headingley on Sunday.

Stuart Broad was last man out for 46, having helped England put on 83 runs for the last two wickets during partnerships of 49 and 32 with Mark Wood (19) and James Anderson (10 not out) respectively.

Tim Southee took three wickets for six runs in 17 balls on his way to figures of four for 83 in 30 overs.

Adam Lyth top-scored with 107, the opener making a maiden Test century on his Yorkshire home ground.

England captain Alastair Cook, Lyth’s fellow left-handed opener, made 75 during which he broke Graham Gooch’s previous record for the most Test runs by an England batsman of 8,900.

England lead the two-match series 1-0 following their 124-run victory in the first Test at Lord’s on Monday.

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New Zealand, set 345 to win on the fifth and final day, were dismissed for 220 as England won the 100th Test between the two countries to go 1-0 up in this two-match series ahead of the second Test at Headingley on Friday.

For England, without a permanent head coach following the sacking of Peter Moores and coming off the back of a disappointing 1-1 series draw in the West Indies, this was just the morale boost they needed.

New Zealand, who had earlier collapsed to 12 for three, were again in dire straits at 61 for five after man-of-the-match Ben Stokes had taken two wickets in two balls.

But the gritty BJ Watling, whose 59 was his second fifty of the match, and the dashing Corey Anderson (75), kept England at bay during a sixth-wicket stand of 107. However, both batsmen fell in quick succession to leave New Zealand 174 for seven.

New Zealand were rocked from the outset of their second innings, losing both openers for ducks without a run on the board in a match where, for the most part, they had been on top.

The second ball saw Martin Guptill become James Anderson’s 399th Test wicket, caught in the slips by Gary Ballance.

New Zealand were still on nought when Stuart Broad’s first ball of the second over had Tom Latham lbw for a golden duck.

For New Zealand, it was all starting to become horribly reminiscent of their last Test at Lord’s, in 2013, when they slumped to 68 all out chasing 239. The collapse continued when Broad, who took a Test-best seven for 44 against New Zealand at Lord’s two years ago, had Ross Taylor plumb lbw for eight. New Zealand took the score on to 61 before Stokes, who on Sunday scored the fastest Test century at Lord’s, off just 85 balls, struck twice in two balls.

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New Zealand lost influential captain Brendon McCullum to the fifth ball of the match and were bowled out for 183.

Grant Elliott resisted with 83, while Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Johnson and James Faulkner shared eight wickets.

Australia rarely looked troubled, sealing a seven-wicket win in 33.1 overs, with captain Michael Clarke scoring 74 and Steve Smith 56 not out.

Clarke, in his final one-day international, was given a standing ovation by the record 93,000 crowd and welcomed by his team-mates on the boundary when he was bowled by Matt Henry with eight required.

He was part of the Australia team that last lifted the trophy in 2007, with this success extending their record for most World Cups won. No other team has more than two.

New Zealand 152 for 9 (McCullum 50, Williamson 45*, Starc 6-28) beat Australia 151 (Haddin 43, Boult 5-27, Southee 2-65, Vettori 2-41) by one wicket

Given that they are playing at home, New Zealand are likely to pose serious threat to Sri Lanka, more so because they have outplayed South Africa comfortably in their last warm-up match at the same ground, while Sri Lanka had been upset by Zimbabwe at Lincoln, that too in a convincing margin. ICC Cricket World Cup 2015: POINTS TABLE

With the bat, Kane Williamson has the toast of the nation for some time now. His current form is nigh-unbelievable: his last 16 innings include three hundreds and nine fifties (two of these half-centuries are 97 apiece); Ross Taylor, the man who tore the Pakistani attack to shreds in ICC World Cup 2011, would be the perfect partner with his ability to explode without warning. ICC Cricket World Cup 2015: Complete Coverage

Brendon McCullum may have been phenomenal form in the longest formats, but his One-Day International (ODI) average since the beginning of 2014 reads a mere 27. The fact that he has a strike rate of 117 can prove to be effective; it is also to be remembered that McCullum, just like Taylor, can play those “impact innings”.

The perpetually underrated Martin Guptill, steady at the top and arguably the best of contemporary fielders, would form the support cast along with Grant Elliott and Luke Ronchi, both of whom have struck gold of late. Add to that the dangerous Tom Latham and Corey Anderson, the reliable Daniel Vettori, and the six-hitter Tim Southee, and New Zealand have a variety and depth in their line-up that can be the envy of many.

The New Zealand ODI seam attack is perhaps the best in the world: Southee and Trent Boult would match any new-ball pair; Kyle Mills has the experience and control; Adam Milne is genuinely quick; Mitchell McClenaghan, full of variations; Nathan McCullum, is unlikely to play, as New Zealand would probably play that old sly fox, Vettori; he will still have a trick or two up his sleeve.

New Zealand’s fielding standards have been traditionally high (often the best in the world). Add to that the home advantage: of their 17 home matches in 2014 and 2015 with decisions, New Zealand have won 12 and lost five (only Australia has better numbers). Restrict the opposition to only subcontinent oppositions, and the ratio reads 10:2. In addition to that, they have steamrolled South Africa by a 134-run margin: all New Zealand batsmen scored runs and no bowler went at above six.

The other aspect Sri Lanka needs to be wary of is Kiwi tactics: the last time New Zealand played in a World Cup at home they had won seven matches on the trot, and Martin Crowe’s shrewd tactics (involving a spinner to start bowling, playing a bunch of four military-medium pacers, using a pinch hitter, and frequent bowling changes) played a crucial role; who knows what “Baz” may unleash this time on his unsuspecting opposition?

Sri Lanka, on the other hand, have traditionally not done well in World Cups outside the subcontinent, the only exception being ICC World Cup 2003. Their batting would rely heavily on “The Big Three” — Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, and Tillakaratne Dilshan. While the last two have averaged in excess of 60 on the recently concluded Sri Lanka tour, Mahela has also topped 46.

Unfortunately, with none of the others going past the 30-mark, Sri Lanka may have a thing or two to bother. They have Angelo Mathews, who is maturing with every passing day, and the destructive Thisara Perera, but Sri Lanka’s new-generation middle-order continue to disappoint.

The bowling is more efficient than spectacular. Lasith Malinga did not do a great job against Zimbabwe, which probably means Nuwan Kulasekara will have to assume the role of the spearhead. While Nuwan can be more than a handful with the new ball and Mathews can chip in with the odd wicket, especially in helpful conditions, he would need the young seamers to deliver. Sri Lanka would probably be more comfortable if the track is slightly slower, in which case their specialist spinners (and Dilshan) may come into play.

Squads:

New Zealand: Brendon McCullum (c & wk), Martin Guptill, Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Grant Elliott, Corey Anderson, Luke Ronchi (wk), Daniel Vettori, Tim Southee, Kyle Mills, Trent Boult, Mitchell McClenaghan, Tom Latham, Nathan McCullum, Adam Milne

Sri Lanka: Angelo Mathews (c), Kumar Sangakkara (wk), Mahela Jayawardene, Tillakaratne Dilshan (wk), Dimuth Karunaratne, Lahiru Thirimanne (wk), Dinesh Chandimal (wk), Lasith Malinga, Nuwan Kulasekara, Thisara Perera, Suranga Lakmal, Rangana Herath, Sachithra Senanayake, Jeevan Mendis, Dushmantha Chameera

Chaminda Perera