Captain Ross Taylor and Kane Williamson ensured New Zealand made a strong start on day one of the second Test against Sri Lanka on Sunday.
Taylor and Williamson's unbeaten 209-run partnership guided New Zealand to 2-223 before play was halted earlier than expected due to late showers.
Taylor remains at the crease on 119 not out, while Williamson has 95 runs to his name in Colombo.
The visitors, who won the toss and elected to bat in typically hot and humid conditions, were under pressure at 2-14 following the dismissals of openers Martin Guptill and Brendon McCullum.
Guptill was the first to fall, caught at slip by Angelo Mathews off Nuwan Kulasekara for four in the opening over.
McCullum controversially followed three overs later when he was trapped lbw by Shaminda Eranga for four, with replays revealing a thick inside edge that the umpire failed to spot.
But New Zealand gained the ascendancy from that point, with Taylor and Williamson combining for the team's highest partnership this calendar year.
The pair easily surpassed the 124 set by Guptill and McCullum against Zimbabwe in Napier in January with a disciplined approach that offered few chances for the hosts.
Taylor brought up his eighth Test century in the final session, while Williamson remains five runs short of his third Test hundred.
New Zealand made one change to the side that lost the opening Test by 10 wickets, with all-rounder Todd Astle making his Test debut in place of James Franklin.
Tillakaratne Dilshan returned from a back injury for Sri Lanka as a replacement for Dimuth Karunaratne.