The New Zealand Black Caps are set to face Zimbabwe in a two-match Test cricket series starting Wednesday, July 30, at the Queen Sports Club in Bulawayo.
Coach Rob Walter, on his first tour in charge, praised his team’s strong performance in the recent T20 Tri-Series, where they remained unbeaten and beat South Africa by three runs in the final.
Walter said the team showed great skill by adapting to different pitch conditions during the tournament. “We played on three different pitches and the team adjusted really well.”
Eighteen players were used during the series. Batters Tim Seifert, Rachin Ravindra, and Devon Conway led the scoring, while Matt Henry took the most wickets, ten in total.
Conway, who replaced injured Finn Allen, made a big impact with an average of 45 runs over four games. “Dev is a quality player,” said Walter. “It was great to see him playing freely and confidently.”
Bowler Ish Sodhi had the best economy rate at just 5.75 runs per over, closely followed by Zak Foulkes.
Now, all eyes turn to the Test series. Walter expects Zimbabwe to offer stronger competition this time, especially with key players returning. Zimbabwe lost their last Test series to South Africa by big margins, but Walter is not taking them lightly.
The second Test will be played from August 7 to 11. The Black Caps squad includes captain Tom Latham, Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, and other experienced players.
