New Zealand won the first test against Zimbabwe in just three days, clinching a nine-wicket victory at the Queens Sports Club after dismantling the hosts’ batting lineup on Friday. With stand-in skipper Mitchell Santner taking four wickets, Zimbabwe was bowled out for 165 runs in their second innings, having started the day at 31-2. This left New Zealand with a simple target of just eight runs to win the match. Henry Nicholls hit the winning run in the third over after tea on the third day, putting the tourists up 1-0 in the two-match Test series.
Zimbabwe began the day hoping to erase a 158-run first innings deficit and set a challenging target for New Zealand. However, they were always under pressure, despite the fact that the visitors were two bowlers down. All-rounder Nathan Smith had suffered an abdominal strain on the second day, and Will O’Rourke did not bowl after lunch on Friday due to back stiffness.
Zimbabwe only managed to add three runs to their overnight score before Nick Welch was caught behind off O’Rourke. By lunch, they were in a precarious position at 114-6, still trailing by 44 runs. By then, they had lost their top scorer, Sean Williams, who was caught behind for 49, and captain Craig Ervine, who edged the ball to Matt Henry and was dismissed for 22.
Matt Henry, who had an impressive haul of 6-39 in the first innings, persisted as the lone pace bowler after lunch. He took the key wicket of Zimbabwe’s last recognized batsman, Sikandar Raza, cheaply, ensuring a nine-wicket match haul. Santner, captaining the Kiwis for the first time in the absence of the injured Tom Latham, cleaned up the tail end, finishing with figures of 4-27 from 17.1 overs. Henry took 3-51 in the second innings, and O’Rourke had 3-28 before his injury.
Zimbabwe had won the toss on Wednesday and elected to bat, scoring 149 in their first innings. New Zealand responded with 307-9. The second test is scheduled to be played in Bulawayo, starting next Thursday.
