The Black Caps' lead in the first Test against Sri Lanka has swelled to 121 runs in the morning session of day three at the Basin Reserve, with the hosts reaching 403/3 at lunch.
Opener Tom Latham continued to build on his overnight score of 121, passing 150 for the second time in his career, reaching the milestone off 310 balls, with 14 boundaries, finishing the session not out with 168, 10 away from setting a new career Test best.
Starting the day at 311/2, the Black Caps lost Ross Taylor for his overnight score 50 in the day's opening over, caught quite brilliantly at short leg by Dimuth Karunaratne off the bowling of Lahiru Kumara.
Taylor's dismissal saw Henry Nicholls join Latham and the Cantabrian left handers didn't waste their time in making Sri Lanka toil, reaching a 50-run partnership off just 85 balls.
Nicholls went to lunch unbeaten on 45 from 82 balls, closing in on his eighth Test half-century, as his partnership with Latham reached 91 at the end of the morning session.
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