logo
Conway rides his luck to lead New Zealand to comfy T20 win over Zimbabwe

Conway rides his luck to lead New Zealand to comfy T20 win over Zimbabwe

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — If Devon Conway was a cat, he used eight of nine lives to lead New Zealand over Zimbabwe by eight wickets in Twenty20 cricket on Friday.
Conway was dropped on 1, should have been run out on 34, survived a strong lbw appeal and miscued shots all over Harare Sports Club that happened to land safely.
He ended up hitting the winnings runs, pulling Trevor Gwandu to the midwicket boundary for New Zealand to win with 6.1 overs to spare.
Zimbabwe was made to bat first and scored only 120-7, and New Zealand replied with 122-2, Conway top-scoring with an unbeaten 59 off 40 balls, his first T20 half-century in 17 months.
'Got a bit lucky early and fortunate I got through that period,' Conway said. 'It was nice to spend some time in the middle.'
New Zealand has two wins from two games in the T20 tri-series with South Africa.
Zimbabwe opening batters Wessly Madhevere and Brian Bennett greeted the New Zealanders aggressively. But the run rate was falling from eight an over even before Bennett, 20 off 19, gave Henry his first wicket at the end of the powerplay.
New Zealand could count on three spinners to Zimbabwe's one, and Mitchell Santner and Rachin Ravindra put the brakes on the home side. The only other decent scorer was Madhevere, who backed away to hit Adam Milne to the off side and lost his off stump after 36 off 32 balls.
Henry took 3-26 and Santner and Ravindra a wicket each.
When New Zealand batted, Blessing Muzarabani dropped Conway in the first over but made up for it by dismissing Tim Seifert in the second.
As Conway rode his luck, Ravindra was on the charge with three consecutive boundaries off Gwandu and a six over deep backward point. His 30 off 19 lifted New Zealand more than halfway to the target.
Conway didn't look comfortable until he was in the high 30s, but he and Daryl Mitchell, 26 off 19, steered New Zealand home by a wide margin.
Zimbabwe plays South Africa next on Sunday.
___
AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

NIL promises made to recruits, now coaches wait for key decision to learn whether they can keep them
NIL promises made to recruits, now coaches wait for key decision to learn whether they can keep them

Winnipeg Free Press

time28 minutes ago

  • Winnipeg Free Press

NIL promises made to recruits, now coaches wait for key decision to learn whether they can keep them

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Next week, college football coaches can put the recruiting promises they have made to high school seniors on paper. Then the question becomes whether they can keep them. Uncertainty over a key element of the $2.8 billion NCAA antitrust settlement that is reshaping college sports has placed recruiters on a tightrope. They need clarity about whether the third-party collectives that were closely affiliated with their schools and that ruled name, image, likeness payments over the first four years of the NIL era can be used to exceed the $20.5 million annual cap on what each school can now pay players directly. Or, whether those collectives will simply become a cog in the new system. Only until that issue is resolved will many coaches know if the offers they've made, and that can become official on Aug. 1, will conform to the new rules governing college sports. 'You don't want to put agreements on the table about things that we might have to claw back,' Ohio State coach Ryan Day explained at this week's Big Ten media days. 'Because that's not a great look.' No coach, of course, is going to fess up to making an offer he can't back up. 'All we can do is be open and honest about what we do know, and be great communicators from that standpoint,' Oregon's Dan Lanning said. Aug. 1 is key because it marks the day football programs can start sending written offers for scholarships to high school prospects starting their senior year. This process essentially replaces what used to be the signing of a national letter of intent. It symbolizes the changes taking hold in a new era in which players aren't just signing for a scholarship, but for a paycheck, too. Paying them is not a straightforward business. Among the gray areas comes from guidance issued earlier this month by the newly formed College Sports Commission in charge of enforcing rules involved with paying players, both through the $20.5 million revenue share with schools and through third-party collectives. The CSC is in charge of clearing all third-party deals worth $600 or more. It created uncertainty earlier this month when it announced, in essence, that the collectives did not have a 'valid business purpose.' if their only reason to exist was ultimately to pay players. Lawyers for the players barked back and said that is what a collective was always met to be, and if it sells a product for a profit, it qualifies as legit. The parties are working on a compromise, but if they don't reach one they will take this in front of a judge to decide. With Aug. 1 coming up fast, oaches are eager to lock in commitments they've spent months, sometimes years, locking down from high school recruits. 'Recruiting never shuts off, so we do need clarity as soon as we can,' Buckeyes athletic director Ross Bjork said. 'The sooner we can have clarity, the better. I think the term 'collective' has obviously taken on a life of its own. But it's really not what it's called, it's what they do.' In anticipating the future, some schools have disbanded their collectives while others, such as Ohio State, have brought them in-house. It is all a bit of a gamble. If the agreement that comes out of these negotiations doesn't restrict collectives, they could be viewed as an easy way to get around the salary cap. Either way, schools eyeing ways for players to earn money outside the cap amid reports that big programs have football rosters worth more than $30 million in terms of overall player payments. 'It's a lot to catch up, and there's a lot for coaches and administrators to deal with,' Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti said, noting the terms only went into play on July 1. 'But I don't think it's unusual when you have something this different that there's going to be some bumps in the road to get to the right place. I think everybody is committed to get there.' Indiana coach Curt Cignetti, whose program tapped into the transfer portal and NIL to make the most remarkable turnaround in college football last season, acknowledged 'the landscape is still changing, changing as we speak today.' 'You've got to be light on your feet and nimble,' he said. 'At some point, hopefully down the road, this thing will settle down and we'll have clear rules and regulations on how we operate.' At stake at Oregon is what is widely regarded as a top-10 recruiting class for a team that finished first in the Big Ten and made the College Football Playoff last year along with three other teams from the league. 'It's an interpretation that has to be figured out, and anytime there's a new rule, it's how does that rule adjust, how does it adapt, how does it change what we have to do here,' Lanning said. 'But one thing we've been able to do here is — what we say we'll do, we do.' ___ AP college sports:

Venus Williams, 45, gets a wild-card entry for the Cincinnati Open after win in Washington
Venus Williams, 45, gets a wild-card entry for the Cincinnati Open after win in Washington

Winnipeg Free Press

time28 minutes ago

  • Winnipeg Free Press

Venus Williams, 45, gets a wild-card entry for the Cincinnati Open after win in Washington

MASON, Ohio (AP) — Venus Williams' return to professional tennis will not just be a one-tournament visit: She was awarded a wild-card entry on Wednesday for next month's Cincinnati Open. The 45-year-old Williams is participating in her first event in more than a year this week at the DC Open and won first-round matches in both singles and doubles. Her 6-3, 6-4 victory over 23-year-old Peyton Stearns on Tuesday night made Williams the second-oldest woman to win a tour-level singles match. Martina Navratilova was 47 when she picked up her last singles victory in 2004. Williams has won seven Grand Slam singles titles — five at Wimbledon and two at the U.S. Open — plus 14 more in doubles with her sister Serena and two in mixed doubles. She'll play Magdalena Frech of Poland on Thursday in Washington. The Cincinnati Open begins on Aug. 5 and is a hard-court tuneup for the U.S. Open. Caty McNally, the only player to take a set off champion Iga Swiatek at Wimbledon, also was given a wild card for Cincinnati on Wednesday. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. ___ AP tennis:

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store