Sri Lanka tame Kiwis, enter final
A rampant Sri Lanka stormed into the ICC Cricket World Cup final after convincingly beating New Zealand by five wickets in Colombo.
Styris (57) shared an important stand of 77 for the fourth wicket with Ross Taylor to raise New Zealand hopes after they won the toss in this day-night match.
But the Kiwis, in their sixth ICC Cricket World Cup semi-final but yet to take the next step, lost momentum at crucial stages - and their last six wickets fell for 25 runs as they were bowled out for only 217 in the 49th over.
On the same strip, England's 229 for six proved emphatically inadequate in Saturday's quarter-final - suggesting Sri Lanka would be strong favourites for another successful chase.
New Zealand's top three each got started, but little more.
Brendon McCullum was bowled by a Rangana Herath arm ball, attempting to repeat the dose after slog-sweeping the same bowler for six in his previous over.
Then Muttiah Muralitharan got one to turn and bounce to have Jesse Ryder caught behind cutting - and Lasith Malinga (three for 55) returned, after just one over with the new ball, to york Martin Guptill with a trademark inswinger.
From 84 for three in the 22nd over, Styris and Taylor therefore needed to sculpt the innings - and they did so with sense and skill.
Styris' first task was to keep out a clutch of devilish Malinga yorkers, and he survived to drive well against both pace and spin.
Even so when Taylor pulled a rare bad ball from Ajantha Mendis straight to deep midwicket in the 40th over, the onus was back on the Kiwis' number five to see them through to a competitive total.
Kane Williamson escaped a run-out scare when a direct hit by Mahela Jayawardene from mid-off would have stranded him on four, and the 20-year-old then provided powerplay impetus in a breezy 22 from only 16 balls.
But Styris needed to hold his nerve again once Williamson walked across his stumps to be lbw to Malinga.
Then after master off-spinner Murali marked his final international delivery in his native country with a big off-break to have Styris lbw on the back foot, the Kiwis capitulated to Mendis (three for 35).
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