New Zealand beat Zimbabwe by 10 wickets

New Zealand beat Zimbabwe by 10 wickets
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Summary New Zealand cruised to 10-wicket win over Zimbabwe in first T20 international at Harare Sports Club.

New Zealands disciplined bowling attack set the tourists on their victory path after restricting Zimbabwe to 123-8 inside 20 overs.Seamer Kyle Mills and spinner Nathan McCullum took two wickets each as New Zealands attack kept Zimbabwes batsmen off balance throughout. Captain Brendan Taylor top-scored for Zimbabwe with an unbeaten 50.In pursuit, openers Martin Guptill (40 not out) and Brendon McCullum (81 not out) immediately went on the attack, taking advantage of Zimbabwes inaccurate bowling and poor fielding.The touring side romped home with 39 balls to spare.We didnt play well at all, we were not even close to our best, we didnt hit the ground running today, Zimbabwe captain Taylor said. Losing wickets regularly was always going to put us on the back foot.We have put that match behind us now and look forward to a new game on Monday.Mills accurate bowling was marked by good line and length as Zimbabwe struggled to score freely off him. He ended with figures of 2-15.He removed both openers, Hamilton Masakadza and Chamu Chibhabha, for 9 to peg back the hosts. First to go was Masakadza, who fell to a full delivery that was caught at mid off by Nathan McCullum. Chibhabha drove straight to Brendon McCullum.Forster Mutizwa, who scored 16, was Zimbabwes second-best scorer as wickets fell at regular intervals.Zimbabwes batting lineup was weakened after in-form top order batsman Vusi Sibanda pulled out of the team just before the start of the game after learning of the death of his mother. Former captain Tatenda Taibu also withdrew after injuring his finger while batting in the nets.The second and final game of the Twenty20 series is on Monday before three ODI matches and a one-off Test.
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