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Otago Daily Times
2 days ago
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Henry delivers as Black Caps triumph
Matt Henry says no. South Africa needed seven off the last over to win the final of the Zimbabwean Tri-Series in Harare. Dewald Brevis was at the wicket and striking it nicely. But experienced Black Caps right-armer Henry sealed the win with a gutsy final over. Instead of going to the yorker to dot-up his opponent, he went for a hard length and the right-hander holed out dramatically. George Linde was brilliantly caught from the penultimate ball as well to help seal a three-run win. The Black Caps posted 180 for five. South Africa were costing but got the wobbles and were restricted to 177 for six. But with just seven runs needed from the final over, and six wickets in hand, South Africa had the whip hand. But turns out Henry had the reins. He was named player of the match for his two for 19 from three overs. Adam Milne (one for 27 from four) proved hard to get away, while New Zealand's top three all made valuable runs. Tim Seifert's innings (28 off 30) was cut off by a quality catch by the captain Rassie van der Dussen at extra cover. Left-arm spinner Senuran Muthusamy had hung the ball out wide and Seifert had to reach for it. But van der Dussen had to reach further. He dived high to his right and intercepted it. Still, Seifert and Devon Conway had put on 75 for the first wicket and the Black Caps had a very solid platform. Conway pushed on to post 47 from 31 balls and Rachin Ravindra slapped 47 from 27. But the Black Caps' innings fell away at the back end. They were not able to push on and bury the game. That left the door ajar for the Proteas and they were cruising at 92 without loss. Did someone say choke? That might be a bit harsh, but the momentum changed when the Black Caps broke the opening stand between Lhuan-dre Pretorius (51 off 35) and Reeza Hendricks (37 off 31). Pretorius was creating memories for the highlight reel on his way to his maiden T20 international half-century, while Hendricks was either blocking the ball or bashing it. When he bashed it, the ball went for six. Michael Bracewell got the important breakthrough. He lured Pretorius out of his crease and Seifert effected the stumping. Hendricks pulled the ball to Conway at deep backward square. Brevis clouted 31 from 16. He smashed three sixes — one of them was a one-handed effort. He was inches away from swatting a fourth, but Bracewell showed great balance and some juggling skills at deep mid-wicket to take the catch right on the rope in a tense last over. The match was still there for the taking, but Daryl Mitchell made a stunning diving catch to dismiss Linde. And Henry closed the game with a dot ball to complete a tremendous over that proved the difference. New Zealand was unbeaten during the series which also involved the home team Zimbabwe. The Black Caps are set to play two tests against Zimbabwe, the first beginning on Wednesday. NEW ZEALAND T Seifert c van der Dussen b Muthusamy 30 (28) D Conway c Burger b Ngidi 47 (31) R Ravindra c Brevis b Burger 47 (27) M Chapman c Hermann b Ngidi 3 (6) D Mitchell not out 16 (14) M Bracewell c Linde b Maphaka 15 (12) M Santner not out 3 (2) Extras (lb 6, w 13)19 Total (for 5wkts, 20 overs)180 Fall: 1-75, 2-101, 3-127, 4-152, 5-174. Bowling: L Ngidi 4-0-24-2 (1w), N Burger 4-0-41-1 (3w) K Maphaka 4-0-35-1 (3w), G Linde 1-0-9-0, S Muthusamy 3-0-27-1, C Bosch 4-0-38-0 (1w). SOUTH AFRICA L Pretorius st Seifert b Bracewell 51 (35) R Hendricks c Conway b Foulkes 37 (31) H van der Dussen c Mitchell b Milne 18 (17) R Hermann c Mitchell b Duffy 11 (8) D Brevis c Bracewell b Henry 31 (16) G Linde c Mitchell b Henry 10 (10) C Bosch not out 3 (2) S Muthusamy not out 0 (1) Extras (lb 1, w 15)16 Total (for 6wkts, 20 overs)177 Bowling: M Henry 3-0-19-2, J Duffy 4-0-36-1 (2w), Z Foulkes 3-0-36-1 (3w), A Milne 4-0-27-1, M Santner 3-0-29-0 (1w), M Bracewell 3-0-29-1 (1w). Result: New Zealand won by three runs.
Daily Maverick
6 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Maverick
Proteas prepare for T20 tri-series final despite not firing on all cylinders
South Africa have struggled with bat and ball in patches in Zimbabwe and will need to be at their best to overcome a powerful New Zealand outfit. The Proteas are through to the T20 tri-series final against New Zealand on Saturday, but they haven't played close to their best cricket thus far. South Africa have won two of their four matches in Zimbabwe – five- and seven-wicket victories against the hosts, and two thumping defeats, falling by 21 runs and seven wickets to the Black Caps. It's been an extremely inconsistent start to Shukri Conrad's tenure as national white-ball coach, who is overseeing the side in the shortest format for the first time. South Africa's current T20 squad is filled with youngsters getting to grips with the rigours of international cricket alongside fringe players in the regular T20 squad. Only opening batter Reeza Hendricks and fast bowler Gerald Coetzee were part of the squad that took part in the T20 World Cup last year, with Conrad opting to rest his all-format players for the tour. New Zealand, meanwhile, have come out guns blazing with a side that's very close to their best, and thoroughly displayed their superiority with a four and zero record across their four matches. South Africa's task in the final in Harare will be tough. Bowling front All three sides have struggled with the bat in the powerplay, with the decks at Harare Sports Club proving largely turgid for batting. For this reason, every side that has won the toss has opted to bowl first. 'I don't think it decides the game but it seems to be a big part… the toss is definitely important,' Hendricks said after South Africa's seven-wicket defeat to New Zealand on Tuesday. Despite this, South Africa still failed to chase down the Black Caps' score of 173 in their first meeting, after putting them into bat, scraping together only 152 runs before being bowled out. A fairly strong bowling attack, consisting of Lungi Ngidi, Kwena Maphaka, Corbin Bosch, Gerald Coetzee, George Linde and Senuran Muthusamy, were all dealt with on a helpful wicket in Harare. 'The margins are just smaller when you come up against a team like New Zealand,' all-rounder Bosch said. Conrad has opted to rotate his side, with left-arm quick Nandre Burger, leg-spinner Nqabayomzi Peter and all-rounder Andile Simelane introduced sporadically across the series. 'Shuks is trying to find the best combinations,' Bosch explained. 'The goal at the end of the day is for the T20 World Cup coming up next year. He's trying to fine-tune all the combinations. 'This is his first white-ball tour as head coach, he's also trying to find his feet in that sense. 'He's meticulously planning how he wants to go about his teams and how he plans to set up his team moving forward – looking ahead to the T20 World Cup. 'He's trying to find the best combinations for bowlers and batters. He's doing a good job so far, everyone is buying into his plans, so we're in a good space.' Batting woes On the batting front, Rubin Hermann – who made his international debut at the start of the series – has been the most impressive. The powerful southpaw has scores of 45, 1, 63 and 10 in his first four international innings. But while he's mainly come to the crease in the middle order, it's up top where the runs have been dry. South Africa's highest score by an opener on the tour came yesterday against New Zealand when Hendricks scored 41 off 37 deliveries as the Proteas reached 134 for eight in their 20 overs. That target was chased with 4.5 overs to spare. The explosive Lhuan-dre Pretorius, who made his T20I debut after making his Test debut in the same country last month, has also failed to come to grips with the conditions. The 19-year-old had scores of 0, 27 and four at the top of the order before he was shifted down to number five in the hope he would find batting easier in the middle period. He only managed one off six balls after scooping a Mitchell Santner drag-down straight to the fielder at short fine leg. Youngster Dewald Brevis had a solid opening few knocks with scores of 41, 35 and an undefeated 13, but was attacked with a barrage of short balls against New Zealand and seemed unable to get out of first gear as he scored a run-a-ball 13. Whoever Conrad selects to open the batting for Proteas will have a tough task on their hands, but they will need to succeed for the side to have a chance of beating the rollicking Black Caps. 'We'll have to rock up fresh and put our best foot forward,' Hendricks said. The bowlers will also have their work cut out against the Black Caps who have chased easily against South Africa and Zimbabwe so far and on the one occasion they were put into bat, scored 173 runs – the highest score across the five matches played so far. DM
NZ Herald
22-07-2025
- Sport
- NZ Herald
Black Caps v South Africa: Twenty20 Tri-series live updates from Harare
Advertise with NZME. All the action as the Black Caps face South Africa, for the second time, in the Zimbabwe Twenty20 Tri-series Black Caps outclass Zimbabwe to remain perfect in T20 Tri-series The Black Caps are two from two in the Rob Walter era and have added Zimbabwe to the list of their new coach's scalps. Two days on from a 21-run victory over South Africa in Harare, New Zealand managed a comprehensive eight-wicket win over their hosts, remaining unbeaten in the Twenty20 Tri-series and consolidating their place as leaders after each team's first two matches. Back to as close to full strength as possible, given the return of Mark Chapman, Rachin Ravindra and Michael Bracewell from American Major League Cricket, the Black Caps' senior players stood tall to make short work of their hosts. Having played second fiddle in the Black Caps' opener, Matt Henry was the leader of the Kiwi attack, claiming 3-26 with the ball in restricting Zimbabwe to a run-a-ball 120-7. Then, as the squad's senior batter, an unbeaten 59 from 40 balls to Devon Conway at the top of the order guided New Zealand home with 37 balls to spare. Conway's innings was not only timely, given his lack of form at the end of the New Zealand summer, but needed after the 34-year-old was initially overlooked for the squad and only included when Finn Allen was ruled out through injury. The only blemish on the Black Caps' day came with the news Glenn Phillips was ruled out by a groin injury and replaced in the squad by Tim Robinson – man of the match in the opening victory over the Proteas. Already top of the table, victory puts New Zealand further ahead with four points from two matches, above South Africa (two points) and Zimbabwe (zero). After winning the toss and opting to bowl first, it took the Black Caps until the final over of the power play to strike with the ball as Henry bounced out Brian Bennett (21) to give Bevon Jacobs his maiden international catch running in from square leg. At 39-1 at the end of the first six overs, captain Mitchell Santner turned to his spinners to put the brakes on Zimbabwe's innings, even as he dropped Wesley Madhevere on 27 off his own bowling. Fresh from his arrival from America, Ravindra (1-10) accounted for Clive Madande (8), stumped by Tim Seifert, as the hosts crawled to 61-2 at the innings' halfway point. Madvehere wasn't able to make the most of the life he was afforded and lost his leg stump to Milne for 36 at 71-3, before Ryan Burl came and went for 12 when he was snared by Bracewell (1-15). In need of a big finish, Zimbabwe lost captain Sikandar Raza (12), caught at cover by Chapman off Santner, and Tashinga Musekiwa was caught by Duffy in the deep off Henry before the 100 was raised off the 103rd ball of the innings, six down. Zimbabwe at the very least made sure New Zealand needed to chase more than a run-a-ball, even as Tony Munyonga gave Henry a third wicket by finding Chapman at deep square leg, and closed their innings at 120-7. In reply, Conway was given a life when he was dropped on one by Blessing Muzarabani at short third man, who in turn removed Seifert for three at the other end with his first ball, to have the Black Caps 5-1 in the second over. Such a small target afforded New Zealand's batters the chance to start slowly and they crawled to 19-1 until Ravindra hammered three boundaries in three balls off Trevor Gwandu and cleared the cover boundary for the innings' first six in the next over off Muzarabani. At 43-1 after the power play, Conway continued to ride his luck with a number of chances through top-edged pull shots. Ravindra, meanwhile, wasn't as lucky and was well caught by Muzarabani for 30 when he ramped straight to third man off Tinotenda Maposa, having added 59 runs for the second wicket. After scratching his way to 34 from 29 balls, Conway broke the shackles in the 11th over, sending Richard Ngarava over deep midwicket for his first six and Raza over long-on for his second, as the required run-rate plummeted down to less than four an over. A punch out to cover took Conway to 50 in 34 balls and New Zealand to 100 in the 13th over. At the other end, Daryl Mitchell made sure to enjoy himself with the target in sight and even reverse ramped Gwandu for six over the keeper's head to move the target into single figures. Fittingly, it was Conway who had the final say, and pulled Gwandu to the deep square leg boundary, completing the run-chase and completing victory at a canter. The Black Caps continue their Tri-series campaign on Tuesday when they face South Africa for the second time at the same venue.
NZ Herald
16-07-2025
- Sport
- NZ Herald
Black Caps v South Africa live updates: Twenty20 Tri-series, game two from Harare
All the action as the Black Caps meet South Africa in the second match of the T20 Tri-series in Zimbabwe First ball at 11pm 'Very committed': Williamson not done with Black Caps, despite Zimbabwe snub Despite opting out of this month's tour of Zimbabwe, Kane Williamson still has aspirations to represent his country, new Black Caps coach Rob Walter says. At 34, and with more yesterdays than tomorrows in his international career, Williamson has opted out of the test and Twenty20 tri-series with South Africa, in order to play franchise cricket in England. Last year, after New Zealand's exit from the T20 World Cup in the Caribbean and United States, Williamson stood down from the Black Caps' white ball captaincy, and opted out of a central contract. And while he now holds a casual playing agreement with New Zealand Cricket, that effectively leaves Williamson able to pick and choose when he plays for the Black Caps. Williamson skipping white ball series is nothing new. The Black Caps have become accustomed to finishing the New Zealand summer with weakened sides, in order to let our best and brightest play in the Indian Premier League. However, Zimbabwe will be the first time Williamson has opted out of test commitments, easily the format in which he has excelled the most. But with the Black Caps' test calendar sparse for 2025, Williamson will instead maximise his earnings - with his English stint coming after similar opportunities in South Africa and Pakistan. As the Black Caps' new head coach, Walter is more than versed in the tug of war between club and country. But now preparing to take charge of New Zealand for the first time, the 49-year-old is confident Kiwi fans have not seen the last of Williamson. 'Myself and Kane have had a nice conversation, a long conversation,' Walter told the Herald. 'It was really great to catch up with him and discuss cricket. It was great to get his lens on New Zealand cricket and the Black Caps. He's been so influential in their success over the years. 'But then also to discuss what the future might look like. I've said it repeatedly, he's still very committed to the Black Caps, and wants to play international cricket. 'I don't think it'll be too long until we see that.' While he may not consider it himself, Williamson also has a huge incentive to continue playing for the Black Caps in the longest format. Following his last test innings, 156 against England in Hamilton in December, Williamson's record reads 9276 runs. Should he score 724 more, he'd become the first New Zealander to cross the fabled mark of 10,000. And, given the trajectory of the modern game, it's more than likely no other Kiwi will get anywhere near whatever mark Williamson sets. As for the other forms of the game, though, there is still much to be decided. Following this year's Champions Trophy in Pakistan and the UAE, Williamson is yet to make any call on whether or not he'll continue playing white ball cricket internationally. Of his modern contemporaries, only England's Joe Root continues to play both red and white ball cricket. India's Virat Kohli has retired from tests, while Australia's Steve Smith has done the same for ODIs and T20s. But as the Black Caps build towards the 2026 T20 World Cup, and 2027 ODI World Cup, Walter says any decision over Williamson's white ball future won't come from his coach. 'If that was a decision to be made, it would be his. Quality players stay quality players, and they just work at finding a method to be successful in all formats. 'He's a generational talent, I've got no doubt he'd find a way. He's probably jostling with what that actually looks like for him personally. 'But as I said, quality players find a way.' Williamson isn't the only Black Cap whose availability Walter will have to wait on, though. Despite holding a central contract, all-rounder Michael Bracewell is unavailable for this series, in order to take up a $450,000 contract in England's The Hundred competition. On the flip side of that, though, Devon Conway has made himself available for the tests, while Adam Milne, Finn Allen and Tim Seifert have been selected for the T20s - all of whom hold casual deals. In the past, Walter has told the Herald that finding the balance between franchise and international cricket is 'the biggest challenge in the game'. And with the issue not going to abate any time soon, Walter asserts that all parties must work in unison to find the right balance. 'It's case by case,' he continued. 'We've been challenged in how we view things. The game is definitely moving, there are decisions having to be made that weren't part of our thinking five to ten years ago. 'From that point of view, it's [about] trying to be cognisant and understanding the positions players are in. 'But ultimately, the Black Caps must always come first, we must prioritise that. But there is a happy medium. 'We probably don't understand exactly what that looks like just yet. But if the players, New Zealand Cricket and the Black Caps are working very hard together to get the balance right, we'll find our way to the other side.'
NZ Herald
07-07-2025
- Sport
- NZ Herald
Black Caps v Zimbabwe: Kane Williamson opts out of test series, Northern Districts' Matt Fisher wins first call-up
As had been expected, Kane Williamson has made himself unavailable for the Black Caps' two-test series away in Zimbabwe this month. The 34-year-old had already opted out of New Zealand's Twenty20 tri-series with the hosts and South Africa so he could take up a stint in England with county side
