Napier: New Zealand defeated Zimbabwe in the final ODI by 202 runs. Skipper Brendon McCullum launched himself to score 119 runs.
Brendon McCullum went on to make magnificent 119 © Getty Images
New Zealand continued its run on the winning track. New Zealand won the toss & decided to bat first here at McClean Park. Nicol & Guptil once again provided a good start to ‘BlackCaps’ by scoring 61 & 85 respectively.
Jacob Oram was bowled out for 25. But then McCullum (119) stood hard on Zimbabweans & scored his 4th ODI century. Williamson & Nathan added 38 & 21 respectively.
Jarvis & Price took 2, 2 wickets. Zimbabwean sensation Vitori was punished, he went for 105 runs in 9 overs & took only 1 wicket. Chigumbura was the other who got hammered by Kiwi batsmen, he took 1 wicket for 92 runs in 10. Utseya bowled economically, took 1 wicket by giving 47 runs in 10 overs.
New Zealand tied their personal achievements to raise a memorable score of 373/8. It not only created hypertension in Zimbabweans but also in the South Africans who will tour New Zealand in the mid of this month.
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In reply to a hefty target, Zimbabwe lost both of its openers in first 7 overs, Mawoyo was run-out & Matsikenyeri was trapped in front of stumps by Bracewell.
Captain of Zimbabwe, Brendan Taylor was the one who stuck his feet in the crease & played a great innings under pressure, he scored 65 runs off 62 balls & hit 6 FOURS, 2 SIXES. Tatenda Taibu added 26 runs to the total.
There were some small efforts by Chakabva (24), Chigumbura (16) & Price (14) but weren’t enough to defeat the mighty Kiwis.
Zimbabwe was bowled out for 171 in 44.0 overs. Tarun took 2 wickets for 41 in 10 overs, Nathan & Kane took 2, 2 wickets in 3 overs whereas Bracewell & Bates took 1, 1 wicket in 8 overs.
Both teams will play 2 T20I’s to end this tour. The first one will be played at Eden Park of Auckland on February 11, 2012.
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Result: New Zealand won by 202 runs.
Man Of The Match: Brendon McCullum (New Zealand).
Winner Of The Series: New Zealand by 3-0.
Comments by both captains:
Brendon McCullum (Captain of New Zealand & Man of the match): ”It was nice to come in with a few runs on the board. Martin and Rob played outstandingly as they have all series. Some guys have had opportunities they haven’t had to play for the country and have put their hands up. The environment we’ve got and the belief are really good at the moment. I just wanted to settle things down with Jake and Kane and then managed to get a few away at the end. Thanks to the fans for coming out, we love coming out to play for you and the support since the Hobart Test has been fantastic.”
Brendan Taylor (Captain of Zimbabwe): ”Congratulations to the New Zealand side who have outclassed us, we can learn a lot from them. There is a lot we can take out of the series even though things haven’t gone our way. We now need to get something out of these Twenty20s.”
