Zimbabwe openers resist after NZ declare on 582

Zimbabwe 55 for 0 (Chibhabha 31*, Mawoyo 20*) trail New Zealand 582 for 4 dec. (Latham 136, Taylor 124*, Williamson 113, Guptill 87, Watling 83*) by 527 runsScorecard and ball-by-ball details

Another day of Test cricket in Bulawayo belonged to New Zealand as they piled on the runs on Zimbabwe with three batsmen scoring centuries and two notching half-centuries in their first-innings total of 582 for 4. New Zealand batted for two entire sessions before declaring during the tea break in a bid to take a few wickets in the last session but Zimbabwe’s opening stand stood unbroken after 30 overs.

Tino Mawoyo and Chamu Chibhabha saw through the new ball, a short-ball barrage and 11 overs of spin to end the day on a respectable 55 for 0. While Mawoyo, who came in for Brian Chari, was more resolute, Chibhabha offered a few more shots to finish the day on 31, compared to Mawoyo’s 20 off 91 balls. Once New Zealand saw there was no swing on offer for the first five overs, which were all maidens, the slip cordon was trimmed and the leg-side field was packed as Tim Southee and Trent Boult switched to a short-ball strategy. When that did not work either, Kane Williamson brought on the spinners and Neil Wagner but the openers’ tactics did not waver to head towards the half-century stand.

Earlier, Ross Taylor became the third centurion of the innings after Tom Latham on day one and Williamson early on day two as New Zealand showed no mercy to Zimbabwe’s …

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