By IANS,
Ahmedabad : New Zealand registered an emphatic 10-wicket win over Zimbabwe in their World Cup Group A match here Friday.
Electing to bat, Zimbabwe were all out for 162 in 46.2 overs and it took Martin Guptill (86 not out) and Brendon McCullum (76 not out) only 33.3 overs to chase down the total.
Zimbabwe, who elected to bat, were off to a disastrous start, losing opener Charles Coventry in the second over when he was run out by Hamish Bennett with a direct hit.
Tatenda Taibu (8), who came next, failed to take advantage of being dropped by New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori (2-25) and fell in the next delivery, trapped leg before by Tim Southee (3-29).
Opener Brendan Taylor dug in his heels to top score with 44 and added 40 for the sixth wicket with Greg Lamb (18). He, however, fell short of partners and departed in the 24th over when he was adjudged lbw to Scott Styris (1-13) to reduce his side to 86 for six.
Prosper Utseya (36) and Graeme Cremer (22) added 33 runs for the eighth wicket and took the score past 100 but Kyle Mills (2-29) breached the partnership with the wicket of Cremer, who was caught behind. Southee took the wickets of Ray Price and Utseya to wrap up up the Zimbabwean innings.
Guptill and McCullum gave the New Zealand chase a brisk start and their partnership was New Zealand’s highest opening stand in World Cup and the highest for any team in this tournament.