NZ vs SL: Adam Milne bowls bat-breaking delivery; Nissanka’s bat split into two- WATCH

New Zealand equalized the three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka by 1-1 on Tuesday, after earning a thumping nine-run win with over five overs left in the match. While the game was a low-scoring affair, fans still found reasons to celebrate as soon as the first over into the match. After New Zealand won the toss and elected to bowl first, Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis walked out to open the innings for the visiting side. 

Nissanka took the strike in the first over of the Lankan innings, which was bowled by Adam Milne, and got off the mark with a four in the fourth ball. What followed next became a significant talking point for fans, as Nissanka’s bat split into two parts in the next ball. Milne bowled a back-of-length delivery, as the opener looked to play it by going into the crease and getting begin the line.

The ball ended up striking the top of the sticker, which resulted in the bat splitting into two pieces. Interestingly, the 24-year-old successfully middled the final ball of the over and ended up having the last ball with another boundary. However, he added only one run to his tally during the match, before getting dismissed in the fourth over.

🚨 BROKEN BAT 🚨
Adam Milne with a ☄️ breaking Nissanka’s bat 😮

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NZ vs SL T20I series: New Zealand win by 9 wickets to level series at 1-1

Dasun Shanaka's Sri Lanka went on to lose wickets in regular intervals and were bowled out for 141 runs. While Dhananjaya de Silva hit a maximum of 37 runs in 26 balls, Kusal Perera scored 35 runs in 32 balls for the visiting side. In the meantime, Milne went on to grab the wickets of Perea, Charith Asalanka, and Pramod Madushanand Dilshan Madushanka to complete his five-wicket haul.

Meanwhile, the proceedings turned out to be completely different in the second innings, as they cruised to victory within 15 overs and with nine wickets in hand. The Kiwis were off to a flying start as opener Chad Bowes began the proceedings with a 31-run knock in 15 balls. Tim Seifert and skipper Tim Southee hits 79 off 43 and 20 off 30, respectively.