The Black Caps crushed the United Arab Emirates by 10 wickets in a group D T20 World Cup game in Chennai yesterday.
Openers Tim Seifert and Finn Allen swatted, slogged and slapped their way to a record partnership.
Their unbroken stand of 175 is the highest partnership in the tournament’s history.
It eclipsed the previous record of 170 set by England openers Alex Hales and Jos Buttler against India in the semifinal of the 2022 edition at the Adelaide Oval.
On the back of the opening stand, the Black Caps made short work of the UAE’s tally of 173 for six.
Seifert has been in blistering form during the past few years and walloped 89 from 42 balls, while Allen clobbered 84 from 50 balls.
Between the pair, they hit 17 fours and eight sixes.
It was a brutal onslaught and a reminder of just how punishing the pair can be when they get into the flow.
No bowler was shown any mercy, but Muhammad Rohid got collared more than most. He went for 51 runs from his 3.2 overs.
Junaid Siddique gave up 22 runs in the fourth over in what was a damaging powerplay.
The Black Caps whacked 78 during the first six overs to seize control of the chase.
Seifert sealed the win in the 16th over with a massive six over long-on.
The UAE had their moments.
Opener Muhammad Waseem clouted 66 not out from 45 balls, and Alishan Sharafu (55 from 47) exploited the short boundaries well on what was an even-paced pitch.
Sharafu’s dismissal was quite something. Mark Chapman intercepted the ball on its way over the rope and relayed the ball to Daryl Mitchell, who completed the catch
Otago all-rounder Glenn Phillips was pummelled for 27 in the 18th over and Jimmy Neesham gave away some overthrows.
But otherwise it was a consummate effort by the Black Caps, who dispatched Afghanistan in their opening game to set up a crunch match with South Africa in Ahmedabad on Sunday.
Their final group game against Canada is on Tuesday.
Black Caps spinner Michael Bracewell has been ruled out of the tournament due to a calf injury.
Canterbury all-rounder Cole McConchie has been called into the squad as a replacement. He last played for the Black Caps in April 2024 and joins the squad following a strong Super Smash campaign, snapping up 14 wickets.
UAE
A Sharma c Phillips b Duffy 8 (6)
W Muhammad not out 66 (45)
A Sharafu c Mitchell b Santner 55 (47)
H Kaushik c Neesham b Phillips 2 (6)
MK Choudhary c Santner b Ferguson 21 (13)
S Khan c Phillips b Henry 7 (3)
M Irfan c Phillips b Henry 0 (1)
Extras (6lb, 1nb, 7w) 14
Total (for 6wkts, 20 overs) 173
Fall: 1-12, 2-119, 3-124, 4-164, 5-173, 6-173.
Bowling: M Henry 4-0-37-2, J Duffy 2-0-16-1 (2w), L Ferguson 4-0-35-1 (2w), M Santner 4-0-23-1, R Ravindra 3-0-19-0, J Neesham 1-0-7-0, G Phillips 2-0-30-1 (1w, 1nb).
NEW ZEALAND
T Seifert not out 89 (42)
F Allen not out 84 (50)
Extras (2w) 2
Total (for 0 wkts, 15.2 overs) 175
Bowling: Haider Ali 4-0-27-0, Mohammad Rohid 3.2-0-51-0, Junaid Siddique 4-0-47-0 (1w), Parashar 1-0-14-0, Muhammad Irfan 3-0-36-0.
Result: New Zealand won by 10 wickets.
