New Zealand off to strong start after Henry's six-wicket haul thwarts Zimbabwe

Fast bowler Matt Henry grabbed 6-39 as Zimbabwe got bowled out for 149 on Wednesday in its first Test match against New Zealand in almost nine years.

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Zimbabwe captain Craig Ervine, who won the toss, wanted his top-order batters to put runs on the board but instead the home team got dismissed inside 2 ½ sessions on the opening day for their second-lowest innings total this year.

New Zealand was at 92-0 when stumps were drawn on the opening day, with Devon Conway unbeaten on 51 after completing his 12th test half-century and Will Young also looking solid at 41 not out.

The return of Brian Bennett, Ben Curran and Sikandar Raza in the longer format of the game didn’t help against the incisive bowling of Henry as he consistently challenged the batters with his intriguing line and lengths.

New Zealand's sharp fielding saw them lifting the tri-series trophy last week in Harare when Henry bowled a terrific last over and gave away only three runs with South Africa in sight of victory.

But on Wednesday New Zealand missed two catching opportunities when top scorer Ervine (39) and Tafadzwa Tsiga (30) both got dropped early in their innings.