Sri Lanka captain Dinesh Chandimal also acknowledged Mendis and Mathews had saved the game for his side, who were dominated by New Zealand over the first three days.
Debutant Rachin Ravindra and number 11 batsman Ajaz Patel survived intense pressure to help New Zealand draw the opening Test against India in Kanpur on Monday.
Trent Boult grabbed two wickets on successive balls to help New Zealand to a 12-run win over England in their Twenty20 tri-series match at Wellington Regional Stadium on Tuesday.
England beat New Zealand by four runs in their third one-day international on Saturday.
A desperate Indian team will pray for a rain-free third and final ODI against New Zealand on Wednesday in its bid to finish on an even keel in a series that neither had context nor any major takeaways.
Images from Day 3 of the first Test between India and New Zealand, at Green Park, Kanpur, on Saturday.
Mike Hesson has been rewarded for his successful reign as New Zealand coach with a contract extension that takes him through until after the 2019 World Cup in England.
The top-order has struggled immensely to contribute runs. In the opener, the Kiwis seemed down and out at 131-6, before number seven Michael Bracewell played a blinder to almost take them over the line.
Bangladesh's first win in any format of the game in New Zealand gave them a 1-0 lead in the two-match series
Trent Boult was named in the New Zealand squad for part of the upcoming Twenty20 series against Australia on Wednesday, indicating that the veteran fast bowler is still in the frame for the World Cup in June.
Opener Hashim Amla fell two runs shy of a half-century as South Africa cruised to a six-wicket victory over New Zealand in the first Twenty20 at Kingsmead on Friday.
Seifert blitzkrieg helps Kiwis beat India in opening T20
IMAGES from the first semi-final of the ICC World Cup played between India and New Zealand at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai on Wednesday.
Ross Taylor and Kane Williamson fell agonisingly short of centuries but New Zealand's imposing total ensured they beat Sri Lanka by 120 runs in the sixth One-day international on Sunday to take an unassailable 4-1 lead in their seven-match series.
Injuries to frontline fast bowlers have forced New Zealand to opt for fresh blood in their pace attack for the three-match ODI series against India starting February 5 in Hamilton. Kyle Jamieson could be in for a potential debut, while Scott Kuggeleijn and Hamish Bennett return to the squad after a long absence. Injury has meant the likes of Trent Boult, Lockie Ferguson and Matt Henry are unavailable for the series.
Latham was just one of three players to have broken bones on the tour, with opening bowler Trent Boult sustaining a fracture in his right hand during the second Test in Melbourne.
Axar Patel, once known as the 'poor man's Jadeja', has transformed into a crucial batting asset for India.
New Zealand will host India for five Twenty20s, three ODIs and two Tests beginning in Auckland on January 24
Tom Latham led New Zealand's solid response with an unbeaten 111 against Sri Lanka's first-innings total of 244 on the third day of the second and final Test in Colombo.
New Zealand needed just an extended session to complete an innings and 276-run victory over South Africa in the first Test, at Hagley Oval in Christchurch on Saturday, to register their first Test victory over the Proteas in 18 years.
Explosive Australian batsman David Warner was on Thursday reinstated as captain of Indian Premier League franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad for the upcoming season, starting on March 29. The 33-year-old had stepped down as captain after he was barred from participating in the 2018 season of the tournament in the aftermath of the 2018 ball-tampering scandal.
Williamson and Co earn high praise from former captain Brendon McCullum.
The most interesting aspect of the contest is the form of batters from both sides which has been the reason of their success so far.
'We were sitting down and looking at what can we get at the end out of the series. It's just about each game as it comes. Like I said, we are looking at this series as an isolated series'
All-rounder James Neesham has returned to the New Zealand Test squad for their three-Test tour of India.
Neither the batting has worked nor has the bowling clicked in the two matches played so far.
Since the start of the year he has scored 593 runs and only been dismissed in single figures once in his 11 ODI innings -- a run of form he credits to the work he has put in off the field.
The hosts ended the day on 144-4 and Henry Nicholls (26) and BJ Watling (six) will resume in Mt. Maunganui on Saturday to try and eat into their 209-run deficit after England were dismissed for 353 after lunch on Friday.
Kyle Jamieson wrecked India with the ball and opener Devon Conway compiled a half-century to put New Zealand in a commanding position in the final of the inaugural ICC World Test Championship in Southampton on Sunday.
New Zealand have drafted in two debutants in the T20 squad besides all-rounder Scott Kuggeleijen, who has played just one T20
Corey Anderson's all-round show helped New Zealand thump Pakistan by 95 runs in the deciding Twenty20 international in Wellington on Friday and bag the three-match series 2-1.
New Zealand cruised to a comprehensive eight-wicket win over England.
Williamson said his team only needs to make 'small adjustments' to bounce back in the series
A stat pack of India and New Zealand's ODI careers...
New Zealand won a rain-affected fourth One-day International by 58 runs on Saturday to take a 2-1 lead over the West Indies in their five-match series.
New Zealand debutant Devon Conway crafted a century on the opening day of the first Test against England on Wednesday, with his unbeaten knock of 136 leading the visitors to 246-3 at stumps at Lord's.
New Zealand's bowlers steadily chipped away at the West Indies lineup to record a ruthless 240-run victory shortly before tea on the fourth day of the second Test at Seddon Park in Hamilton on Tuesday to wrap up a 2-0 series sweep.
Fast bowler Trent Boult picked up five wickets as New Zealand hammered India by eight wickets in the fourth One-Day International.
New Zealand next take on Afghanistan in Melbourne on October 26 while Australia play Sri Lanka in Perth on October 25.
England's sporting global ambitions have never been fully realised since Sir Alf Ramsey's team won the 1966 FIFA World Cup. Whether it is Gary Linekar or Hary Kane, the 'Cup' that they desperately want never came home during the last five and half decades.
