Match overview
New Zealand Cricket beat Zimbabwe Cricket by 9 wickets at Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo, on 30 July 2025. Zimbabwe won the toss, chose to bat, and were dismissed for 149. New Zealand responded with 307, establishing a lead of 158 runs. Zimbabwe's second innings yielded 165, setting a chase of just 8 runs. New Zealand reached that target for the loss of 1 wicket, completing a result that was effectively decided long before the final session. Matt Henry's 9 wickets for 90 runs across 36.5 overs was the defining individual contribution of the match and earned him the Player of the Match award.
The margin of 9 wickets fits squarely within the pattern of this rivalry. New Zealand have won 26 of the 28 Tests between these sides, and their last five meetings have all finished in New Zealand's favour. Zimbabwe's failure to pass 170 in either innings left their bowlers with no margin for error, and New Zealand's batting was always comfortable enough to convert the lead into an insurmountable position.
Venue and conditions
Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo has hosted 46 Test matches, and the ground's numbers tell a story of modest scoring conditions. The average first-innings score across those matches is 212, and the average second-innings total is 186. Zimbabwe's 149 in the opening innings was 63 runs below the historical average for a first innings at the ground. That deficit against a side as experienced as New Zealand was always likely to prove terminal.
The chase success rate at this venue is 38%, reinforcing the general principle that teams setting totals here hold the advantage once they have first-innings runs behind them. New Zealand's 307 gave them a buffer well above the venue's second-innings average. The pitch appears to offer some lateral movement for pace bowlers, which Henry exploited across both Zimbabwe innings. Toss winners at this ground have chosen to field on 39% of occasions, suggesting most captains back the pitch to offer enough for bowlers from the outset.
How to watch
Test cricket involving New Zealand is available in the UK on Sky Sports Cricket, with live streaming through Sky Go and NOW TV for subscribers. For this match, the result is already confirmed, but highlights and match reports are accessible via Sky Sports' digital platforms. The BBC Sport website and app carry written coverage and, for certain ICC-sanctioned Test matches, BBC Radio commentary is available. Check the BBC Sport cricket section for scheduling details specific to each series.
Recent form
New Zealand arrived in Bulawayo on the back of five consecutive Test wins in 2025, including victories against South Africa (twice) and Zimbabwe (twice) earlier in the year. That run of form underlines how settled their squad is across pace bowling and batting depth. Matt Henry's performance in this match is consistent with the form their bowlers have carried across the series.
Zimbabwe, by contrast, entered the fixture having lost all five of their most recent Tests. Their recent defeats include losses to South Africa and earlier in this series against New Zealand, meaning the Bulawayo result extended a difficult run to six. Blessing Muzarabani took 8 wickets for 128 runs in a Test earlier in 2025, which suggests there is individual quality in Zimbabwe's attack, but without runs on the board their bowlers have rarely had enough to work with this year. The next fixture in the series will give Zimbabwe a chance to respond, though the head-to-head record and current form both point heavily in New Zealand's favour.