Online Reporter
ZIMBABWE and New Zealand will clash in a Test match for the first time in nine years with the first of the two matches getting underway at Queens Sports Club this morning.
The Chevrons will go into the match as rank underdogs given the gulf in class between the two teams with Craig Ervine’s team desperate to make an impression after poor performances in recent matches.
The Black Caps have never lost to Zimbabwe.Ben Curran is expected to open the innings with Brian Bennett, who has looked the most in form of Zimbabwe’s batter across all formats, and would hope to carry his form into the Test series.
Bennett would hope for good support from Curran, who himself would look to get things right and score some runs against the Black Caps.
The openers are likely to be followed by an experienced middle order, which includes the likes of captain Ervine, Sean Williams, and Sikandar Raza. The experienced batters will be accompanied by wicketkeeper batter Clive Madande and Nicholas Welch, both of whom would also like to make handy contributions with the bat.
The selectors have decided to retain the core of the bowling attack, which comprises players the majority of whom played the last series against South Africa.The team’s bowling line-up is made up of Wellington Masakadza, Vincent Masekesa, Blessing Muzarabani, and Trevor Gwandu.
The home team would surely miss the services of Richard Ngarava, who is not a part of the squad announced for the two-match Test series.
The Black Caps will don the whites for the first time in more than seven months.
New Zealand Test captain Tom Latham has been ruled out of the first Test with a shoulder injury.
White-ball skipper Mitchell Santner will lead the team in Latham’s absence, becoming New Zealand’s 32nd men’s Test captain.
Latham suffered the injury while fielding during a T20 match for Birmingham earlier in the month and has not recovered sufficiently in time to make it to the XI for the Test.
He will remain with the squad in the hope to regain full match fitness ahead of the second Test starting August 7.
“It’s hugely disappointing for Tom to be missing the first Test, as captain but also as an integral part of the team,” said head coach Rob Walter.
“It’s never great when you lose your captain, who’s a world-class opening batter and a great team man, but that said we’re going to work really hard to have him available for the second Test.
“We’ll continue to assess and see whether a replacement player is necessary, but at this stage we are hopeful that he’ll recover in time.”
Santner takes over fresh off the success in the preceding T20I tri-series, beating South Africa by three runs in a closely-fought final to stay unbeaten on this tour.
“Mitch did a wonderful job with the T20 squad in this recent series,” Walter said.
“He was excellent from a strategy point of view and he has a strong understanding of the game.
Whilst the format is different, he certainly has the respect of the players and will be supported by some highly experienced Test cricketers, so I trust that he’s going to do a great job.” — Sports Reporter/Cricinfo/Agencies
