New Zealand's middle-order batter Brooke Halliday entered record books with an unbeaten 157 against Zimbabwe in the three-ODI series opener in Dunedin on March 5. Brooke became the second no.4 batter to score 150 in ODIs. The only other batter to achieve it is India captain Harmanpreet Kaur who scored an unbeaten 171 against Australia in ODI World Cup 2017 semifinal.
White Ferns show batting prowess
Zimbabwe skipper Nomvelo Sibanda won the toss and opted to bowl first. Skipper Amelia Kerr was dismissed for 15 in the seventh over. Emma McLeod got a good start but departed for a 43-ball 35. New Zealand were 81/2 in the 16th over. Brooke joined Maddy Green in the middle.
Maddy took her time whereas Brooke reached her fifty from 45 deliveries. In the 34th over, Maddy was run out trying to take a second run. She scored 67 runs from 80 deliveries, featuring seven fours.
Isabella Gaze attacked as the slog overs approached. In the 44th over, Brook got to his 100 from 93 balls. In the 46th over, Brooke hit Christable Chatonzwa for four fours. In the penultimate over, Isabella completed her fifty with a boundary from 39 deliveries. In the final overs, Brooke got her 150 from 115 balls. She finished the innings with a boundary as well, taking New Zealand to 354/3.
Brooke's 157 off 118 balls was laced with 24 fours and a six. On the other end, wicketkeeper-batter Isabella hit 10 fours in a 42-ball 59. They shared a 151-run partnership for the fourth wicket.
Zimbabwe merely participate in run chase
The run chase got off to a slow start. Zimbabwe never looked like they will get close to the target of 355. Modester Mupachikwa fell cheaply to Jess Kerr. During opener Kelis Ndhlovu and Chop Mugeri-Tiripano's 93-run partnership, the required run rate slipped out of the grasp. Molly Penfold dismissed Chipo for a 70-ball 38. Then, Nensi Patel dismissed Kelis who scored 52 runs from 109 balls.
Zimbabwe suffered a batting collapse as Amelia and Jess continued to chip away. Zimbabwe were bowled out for 174 in 47.3 overs. They lost the match by a huge margin of 180 runs.
The second of the three-ODI series will take place at the same venue on March 8.