Zimbabwe will be up against New Zealand in the first of the two-match Test series. This article provides details about New Zealand’s Playing 11 vs Zimbabwe for the first game of the Test series.
New Zealand Playing 11 vs Zimbabwe- 1st Test, New Zealand Tour of Zimbabwe 2025:
Openers: Devon Conway (wk), Rachin Ravindra
The Kiwis have been hit by a major blow before the start of the first Test against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo, as regular captain Tom Latham has been ruled out of the first Test.
Mitchell Santner will take over as the captain of the side for the first game of the series and would like to get off to a winning start.
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The Kiwis have decided to field a young side for the two-match Test series, with a few of their key players missing the series due to various reasons.
If we compare the two departments, it is New Zealand’s bowling that looks relatively less experienced, with names like Kyle Jamieson missing the series due to personal reasons.
As far as the team’s batting department is concerned, it includes the likes of Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, and Will Young, to name a few.
Conway and Ravindra are expected to open the innings and would want to get the team off to a good start to make things easy for the incoming batters.
Both batters are known for their sound technique, which will be tested if New Zealand bats first, as the ball might do a bit with the weather expected to be on the cooler side.
Middle-order batsmen and all-rounders: Will Young, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (c), Nathan Smith
The opening pair will be followed by a middle order that has been the backbone of New Zealand and played a major role in helping the team register a historic series win in India.
The visitors’ biggest strength across formats for quite a while has been the depth in the team’s batting department, which is the case in this series as well.
The presence of players like Will Young, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner, and Nathan Smith means that BlackCaps bat till number eight, which brings flexibility to the team.
Like in the recently concluded tri-series, the middle order has a lot of players in the Test squad who can bat at different positions in the batting order depending on the situation.
Bowlers: William O’Rourke, Jacob Duffy, Ajaz Patel
As far as the Kiwi bowling department for the Test series against Zimbabwe is concerned, it looks a bit short on experience, especially in fast bowling.
The team’s fast bowling department comprises names like William O’Rourke and Jacob Duffy, who are expected to feature in the playing XI for the first Test and will be supported by Nathan Smith.
Having said that, the story is completely different when it comes to the team’s spin bowling resources, which will be handled by experienced bowlers Mitchell Santner and Ajaz Patel, with Michael Bracewell being the third spinner.
Other than the specialist bowlers, the BlackCaps have two more bowling options in the form of Rachin Ravindra and Daryl Mitchell, which takes the tally of bowling options to eight.
