New Zealand coast to easy win

New Zealand 196 for 2 (Vincent 66, Fleming 46) beat Zimbabwe Board XI 193 for 8 (Taylor 49) by eight wickets
Scorecard

An opening partnership of 108 by Stephen Fleming and Lou Vincent guided New Zealand to an easy eight-wicket win with almost 25 overs to spare in a warm-up match at Bulawayo.

Andy Blignaut won the toss and elected to bat, but Chamunorwa Chibhabha soon fell for a 25-ball duck, and Vusumuzi Sibanda departed for 6 soon after. A 57-run stand for the third wicket between Stuart Carlisle (24) and Craig Wishart (35) brought some hope for the home side but both fell to Scott Styris, holing out to Daniel Vettori at mid off.

Brendan Taylor went for 49 when he lofted Jeetan Patel only to be brilliantly taken by Vettori on the boundary. Charles Coventry scored a quick 15 off 21 balls, smashing two fours and one six, before Vettori bowled him round his legs. Blignaut hit two fours and the same number of sixes before Patel bowled him for 24 and Gavin Ewing hit an unbeaten19 runs off just 11 balls with two fours and two sixes. Andre Adams was the pick of the bowlers with 1 for 12 off nine overs.

Vincent and Fleming never wasted time and smashed the Zimbabwe Board XI bowlers all over the park, scoring at over ten an over. Vincent raced to his half century off 30 balls with nine fours and one six. Blignaut and Waddington Mwayenga got a hammering and offspinner Ewing had to be introduced into the attack as early as the eighth over.

New Zealand lost their first wicket when Fleming cut Ewing to Chibhabha at backward point for 46, but that did not check the scoring as Craig McMillan joined Vincent. The Board XI were gifted their second wicket, courtesty of a dubious leg before wicket decision by Manny Mhlanga who adjudged Vincent lbw to an Antony Ireland full toss for 66.

But by then New Zealand were 143 for 2 and McMillan and Hamish Marshall guided them to victory with 24.5 overs to spare.

Zimbabwe limped to a disappointing 193 for 8, and that never challenged a New Zealand side who coasted to victory without breaking sweat. Andre Adams was the pick of the bowlers, taking 1 for 12 off nine overs.