New Zealand v Zimbabwe, 2011-12
Wisden's review of the second ODI, New Zealand v Zimbabwe, 2011-12
Andrew Alderson
15-Apr-2013
At Whangarei, February 6, 2012. Second one-day international: New Zealand won by 141 runs.
New Zealand 372-6 (50 overs) (R. J. Nicol 146, M. J. Guptill 77, J. D. P. Oram 59, T. W. M. Latham
48; P. Utseya 3-71); ‡Zimbabwe 231-8 (50 overs) (T. Taibu 50, E. Chigumbura 63, S. W. Masakadza
38; J. D. P. Oram 3-29). One-day international debut: T. S. Nethula (New Zealand).
Whangarei's Cobham Oval became the 12th ground in New Zealand to host a one-day international, and Simon Harvey, the head groundsman, erred on the side of a batsman's paradise. New Zealand took full advantage: those seated in front of the wicket could not afford to be distracted by conversation, coffee or crossword. Nicol anchored the innings with his second one-day century in five matches - he hit six sixes and ten fours from 134 balls - while Guptill, Oram and Latham blazed around him, even peppering the neighbouring rugby stadium. Oram's promotion to No. 3 was a highlight: his 59 came from just 28 balls. There were 16 sixes in all, and 117 came from the last ten overs. Zimbabwe started poorly again, managed only two fours in the first half of their innings, and toiled for the duration in what became batting practice.
Man of the Match: R. J. Nicol.