HARARE: Openers Martin Guptill and Tom Latham both struck centuries as New Zealand crushed Zimbabwe by 10 wickets in the second One-day International on Tuesday to set up a series decider.

Chasing 236 to level the three-match series at Harare Sports Club, Guptill finished unbeaten on 116 while Latham was 110 not out as the Black Caps achieved the target with almost eight overs to spare.

The pair set a new record for the highest successful chase in an ODI without losing a wicket, bettering the 231 that Sri Lanka managed in a 10-wicket win over England in the 2011 World Cup quarter-final in Colombo, as they ensured that New Zealand bounced back from Sunday’s shock seven-wicket defeat, in convincing fashion.

“It’s great to have a performance like this in contrast to the one that we had in the last game. You can see a lot of learning there,” New Zealand’s stand-in captain Kane Williamson said.

Zimbabwe were left to wonder whether they had made the right call at the toss, when Elton Chigumbura went against conventional wisdom and elected to bat first.

The decision backfired when the hosts crumbled in the face of some aggressive New Zealand bowling, losing their top five inside the first 18 overs.

While Grant Elliott used the swing on offer to dismiss Craig Ervine and Chigumbura, leg-spinner Ish Sodhi picked up his first wickets in ODI cricket on his way to figures of three for 38.

“I thought it was a good wicket to bat on, it’s just that we didn’t execute well,” said Chigumbura.

Zimbabwe were grateful to Sikandar Raza for hauling them to a vaguely respectable score, with his 100 not out rescuing the home side from 68 for five and then 146 for eight.

He rebuilt the innings with a 60-run stand for the sixth wicket with Sean Williams, and an 89-run stand for the ninth wicket with Tinashe Panyangara, who made a career-best 33.

Sikandar enjoyed some fortune when he was dropped on 67, and reached his third ODI hundred off the penultimate delivery of the innings.

Zimbabwe needed early wickets if they were going to challenge, but the seamers lacked control up front and Guptill and Latham were allowed to settle.

The pair were never troubled as they set a new record for an ODI partnership in Zimbabwe, eclipsing the 228 put on by Pakistan’s Imran Farhat and Mohammad Hafeez in 2011.

Tom Latham raises his bat after scoring the century. — AFP

It was New Zealand’s highest opening partnership against Zimbabwe, eclipsing the previous best of 204 added by Lou Vincent and Stephen Fleming at Bulawayo in Aug 2005.

While Guptill’s century was his eighth in ODIs, Latham registered his maiden hundred in the format.

“It’s been a long time coming so it’s nice to finally get the monkey off the back,” Latham said. “We struggled a bit at the start but we managed to get through that period, and once we had, we just tried to knock it off in 10-run blocks.”

The series decider will take place at the same venue on Friday.

Scoreboard

ZIMBABWE:

H. Masakadza c Latham b McClenaghan 0 C.J. Chibhabha st Ronchi b Sodhi 42 C.R. Ervine b Elliott 12 R.W. Chakabva lbw b Sodhi 2 E. Chigumbura c Taylor b Elliott 5 S.C. Williams run out 26 Sikandar Raza not out 100 A.G. Cremer c McCullum b Sodhi 5 P. Utseya c Ronchi b McCullum 0 T. Panyangara run out 33

EXTRAS (LB-1, W-8, NB-1) 10

TOTAL (for nine wkts, 50 overs) 235

FALL OF WKTS: 1-3, 2-42, 3-49, 4-54, 5-68, 6-128, 7-137, 8-146, 9-235.

DID NOT BAT: C.B. Mpofu.

BOWLING: Henry 8-2-45-0 (3w); McCullum 10-0-38-1 (2w); McClenaghan 10-1-55-1 (1nb, 3w); Elliott 6-0-27-2; Sodhi 10-0-38-3; Williamson 6-0-31-0.

NEW ZEALAND:

M.J. Guptill not out 116 T.W.M. Latham not out 110

EXTRAS (LB-1, W-9) 10

TOTAL (for no wkt, 42.2 overs) 236

DID NOT BAT: K.S. Williamson, L.R.P.L. Taylor, G.D. Elliott, C.J. Munro, L. Ronchi, N.L. McCullum, I.S. Sodhi, M.J. Henry, M.J. McClenaghan.

BOWLING: Mpofu 7-1-37-0; Panyangara 6-0-30-0; Williams 5.2-0-36-0 (1w); Cremer 10-0-60-0 (1w); Utseya 10-0-46-0 (1w); Sikandar Raza 2-0-17-0 (2w); Masakadza 2-0-9-0.

RESULT: New Zealand won by 10 wickets.

UMPIRES: T.J. Matibiri (Zimbabwe) and R.K. Illingworth (England).

TV UMPIRE: L. Rusere (Zimbabwe).

MATCH REFEREE: D.C. Boon (Australia).

MAN-OF-THE-MATCH: Martin Guptill and Tom Latham (joint).

FIRST MATCH: Harare, Zimbabwe won by seven wickets.

THIRD MATCH: Harare, Friday.

Published in Dawn, August 5th, 2015

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