New Zealand smashed a plethora of records as they thrashed Zimbabwe by an innings and 359 runs at Bulawayo to sweep the series 2-0.
Matt Henry (5-40) and debutant Zachary Foulkes (4-38) had shot out Zimbabwe for 125 in 48.5 overs on the first day at Bulawayo. Returning to Test cricket after four years, Brendan Taylor opened batting and top-scored with 44.
2nd Test, Zimbabwe vs New Zealand
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New Zealand raced to 174-1 at stumps, and reached 601-3 when play was called off on the second day as Devon Conway (153), Henry Nicholls (150 not out), and Rachin Ravindra (165 not out) all hit hundreds. After Mitchell Santner declared on the overnight score, Foulkes (5-37) led the rout as Zimbabwe were bowled out before lunch, for 117 in 28.1 overs.
Here are the major records created over the course of the Test match.
Longest Test careers
Taylor had debuted in 2004. At 21 years 95 days, his Test career is now the 12th-longest of all time, and the longest among cricketers who debuted since Sachin Tendulkar in 1989. Among cricketers who debuted in the 21st century, James Anderson (21 years 51 days) and Mushfiqur Rahim (active, 20 years 33 days) are the only ones to have crossed the 20-year mark at the time of writing.
Oldest active Test cricketers
While not a record, it is worth a mention that Craig Ervine (39 years 355 days), Taylor (39 years 184 days), Sikandar Raza (39 years 107 days), and Sean Williams (38 years 317 days), all of whom played in the Test, are the four oldest active Test cricketers. At 38 years 234 days, Usman Khawaja is next on the list.
Three 150s in a Test innings
Conway, Nicholls, and Ravindra became the third instance of three batters scoring 150 in the same team innings, after Len Hutton (364), Maurice Leyland (187), and Joe Hardstaff (169 not out) against Australia at The Oval in 1938, and Sunil Gavaskar (176), Mohammad Azharuddin (199), and Kapil Dev (163) against Sri Lanka at Kanpur in 1986/87.
Best figures for New Zealand on Test debut
Foulkes’ 5-37 are the fifth-best innings figures by a New Zealand on men’s Test cricket debut, while his 4-38 are the 12th-best. With 6-41 against Pakistan at Christchurch in 2016/17, Colin de Grandhomme (6-41) tops that list.
However, Foulkes does hold the record for best match figures by a New Zealand debutant (9-75). He went past Will O’Rourke’s 9-93 against South Africa at Hamilton in 2023/24. O’Rourke had played in the first Test of the Zimbabwe series, but a back injury ruled him out of the second.
Most wickets in consecutive international innings
Henry (5-40 and 2-16) stretched his streak of international innings with at least one wicket to 42. Only Bishan Singh Bedi (46), Mehidy Hasan Miraz (45), and Sandeep Lamichhane (43) have longer streaks. Among fast bowlers, Dennis Lillee (35) is next.
Third-largest innings win in Test cricket history
New Zealand’s triumph by an innings and 359 runs was the third-largest innings win of all time in Test cricket. England had beaten Australia by an innings and 579 runs at The Oval in 1938, while Australia had beaten South Africa by an innings and 360 runs at Johannesburg in 2002/03.
No fifties in a Test series
Zimbabwe set the sixth instance of a team going without a fifty in a Test series of at least two matches (Williams’ 49 in the first Test remained the highest). The most recent of the five previous instances was in 1895/96, when Barberton Halliwell’s 41 was the highest score in their three-match home series against England.
Players outscoring both opposition totals
The three players mentioned earlier – Conway, Nicholls and Ravindra – outscored both of Zimbabwe's team totals in the match (117 & 125). This is a first in Test cricket, with multiple instances of two players doing so having been recorded.
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