ZIM vs NZ: New Zealand won the recently concluded T20I Tri-Series in Zimbabwe.
After an exciting Tri-Series involving Zimbabwe, New Zealand, and South Africa, it is time for a two-match Test series. Zimbabwe are set to challenge New Zealand for two tests, starting on Wednesday. The first test is scheduled to be played at Queens Sports Club, starting on July 30 with a start time of 1:30 PM.
Just ahead of the start, New Zealand suffered two major injuries. Captain Tom Latham was ruled out of the first game after a shoulder injury. Hence, the white-ball captain Mitchell Santner has been given the nod of the team. All-rounder Glenn Phillips was also ruled out, and Michael Bracewell replaced him.
However, New Zealand are very strong, and they have been in Zimbabwe for 2-3 weeks now and have adjusted themselves pretty well. Zimbabwe suffered a whitewash at the hands of South Africa in two tests, and they need some exceptional performance to put New Zealand under some kind of pressure. Though they had added Sikandar Raza and a few more players to strengthen the side.
ZIM vs NZ: Match Info.
· Series: New Zealand tour of Zimbabwe 2025
· Match: Zimbabwe vs New Zealand, 1st Test
· Venue: Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo
· Time: 1:30 PM IST
· Date: July 30 – August 03, 2025 (Wednesday-Sunday)
ZIM vs NZ: Head-to-Head Stats: ZIM (11) – NZ (14)
New Zealand and Zimbabwe played the first test in 1992, and since then, they have played 17 games in total. Zimbabwe are searching for their first win, while New Zealand have 11 wins under their belts, and six games have been drawn.
ZIM vs NZ: Pitch Report
As seen in the test series against South Africa, the Queens Sports Club offers a dry pitch, which becomes slow as the game goes on. The batting on the second and third games is likely to be better. The average score here in the first and second innings is 324 and 384, respectively. According to the stats, the team that bowls first has a better record here.
ZIM vs NZ: Live Streaming Details
· TV: N/A (Not Televised in India)
· Digital: FanCode (App or website)
ZIM vs NZ: Weather Report
The weather forecast for the next five days in Bulawayo suggests no sign of rain. Instead, the conditions will be bright and sunny, with the average temperature to be around 23°C. The average humidity during the scheduled time will be around 30-35 percent with the moderate wind speed of 15-18 kmph.
ZIM vs NZ: Predicted XIs:
Zimbabwe (ZIM): Brian Bennett, Ben Curran, Nicholas Welch, Craig Ervine (c). Sean Williams, Sikandar Raza, Wellington Masakadza, Clive Madande (wk), Tanaka Chivanga, Blessing Muzarabani, Trevor Gwandu
New Zealand (NZ): Devon Conway, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell. Tom Blundell, Henry Nicholls, Michael Bracewell. Nathan Smith, Mitchell Santner (captain), Matt Henry, Jacob Duffy
ZIM vs NZ: Dream11 Team
· Wicket-keeper: Devon Conway
· Batters: Daryl Mitchell, Will Young, Craig Ervine, Sean Williams
· All-rounders: Mitchell Santner, Rachin Ravindra (Captain), Brian Bennett, Sikandar Raza, Nathan Smith
· Bowler: Matt Henry (Vice captain)
Dream11 Prediction: Zimbabwe have a poor record against all test playing nations in tests. Their series defeat against South Africa's young side exposed the areas in which they are lacking. They lacked the determination to play long with the bat, and then their inexperienced bowling unit made the job hard.
The pitch here looks pretty good for New Zealand, and these players are coming after a Tri-Series win. They did well in both departments and will be confident for this game. Hence, there are big chances that New Zealand will win the first test here.
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