[Match Thread] Zimbabwe v New Zealand: 2nd Test

[SpitfiresKent]

Tino is pretty good at playing the sweep shot for such a big man

[AngusBeef]

This may end up being our first 50+ run opening partnership in 27 innings!

[tawac]

What are you on about tawac, we're doing fine.

Well on the contrary, yes. Good thing we managed to get to stumps without losing wickets but knowing Zim it would have been heart breaking moving from 15/0 after 15overs to 15/4 after 17overs. We survive to fight another day.

[Jemisi]

A fifty run opening stand!

[Googly]

And how long have they kept Tino in the wilderness? I'd like to see him in ODI's as well. He's a good bat.

[SpitfiresKent]

I'd like to see him in ODI's as well.

His strike rate could be an issue though.

[watermelon]

Wow, Tino really carries a pot belly nowadays; but as long as he can duck alright, I guess it's all right. Some mumblings about "KFC" off-air in the commentary box

My run-in with these losers at KFC is pretty well-known among the cricketing elite in Zimbabwe.

[Kriterion_BD]

Tino should always have been opening. Although its going to be quite hard to draw by just leaving and blocking. You've got to put up 400+ in these conditions.

[jaybro]

Tino seems to always save his best for test matches, he has gone years of doing nothing in franchise cricket .....

Interesting to see how things go from here the game plan is obviously to draw they prepared the flattest slowest pitch and from what the openers have produced a draw is the goal. Looking at the rest of our lineup theyre all attacking players I really can't see Raza, Willy or Moor blocking out 15 off 100. Ervine has tried to dead bat an innings before but failed I guess Prince might be ok ?? Willy already said in an interview he won't change and is going for his shots surely not in the team game plan ? I guess that's Sean and that's why he is so fickle and is always in trouble with coaches and management ....

Regis is one of the only guys who suits this approach and he was dropped for the big hitting Moor ???

Tiripano might be a dark horse again he's already played a couple of long blocking test innings .....

[Kriterion_BD]

Oh Regis is not in this squad? Big blow, although he was out of form. But I like Regis. I remember he was the only one who scored any runs in the 2010 tour of Bangladesh. Been fan ever since.

Interesting to see how things go from here the game plan is obviously to draw they prepared the flattest slowest pitch and from what the openers have produced a draw is the goal. Looking at the rest of our lineup theyre all attacking players I really can't see Raza, Willy or Moor blocking out 15 off 100. Ervine has tried to dead bat an innings before but failed I guess Prince might be ok ?? Willy already said in an interview he won't change and is going for his shots surely not in the team game plan ? I guess that's Sean and that's why he is so fickle and is always in trouble with coaches and management ....

Willy is actually right here. There is no way this Test will be draw by a blockfest. It doesn't work in cricket. Closest it came to working was in 2014 when England's last wicket partnership stalled Sri Lanka for a session...and then James Anderson presented a dolly to short leg in the final over of the match. Sri Lanka had given up on winning and Anderson still fucked it up. Will never forget that colossal error.

The there was the epic effort by Amla and ABD in India a few months ago...SA still lost although they had quite a few believing for a great long while.

And most recently Neville and Okeefe tried it for nearly a session against Sri Lanka. At one point there were 25 consecutive maidens and the partnership was 4 off of 160. Didn't work. Each of those were in the final day of a Test. This game has 270 overs left, and with NZ's lead 10 overs is enough for them to chase down whatever target ZIM can set. This test will only be saved by putting on a big total of at least 400 (to avoid the follow on). Leave the balls that don't threaten the stumps. Block those that do decisively. And punish the bad balls. Same thing you would do in any other Test innings.

The moment you go "we have to play out x number of overs/sessions to draw" is the moment you make a mistake. NZ only need 14 mistakes out of the 1500+ deliveries that still remain in this game. The infamous ZIM collapse is always just around the corner.

You have play each ball on its merit.