Zakary Foulkes had a debut to remember for New Zealand in Test cricket. The pacer who replaced an injured Nathan Smith, entered record books with nine wickets in the 2nd Test versus Zimbabwe in Bulawayo. Foulkes ended the match with nine wickets which included a fifer in the 3rd innings. His exploits helped New Zealand claim their biggest Test win (by innings). New Zealand defeated Zimbabwe by an innings and 359 runs inside three days.
In Zimbabwe’s first innings score of 125, Foulkes bagged 4/38 runs from 16 overs. In the 3rd innings, he went on to pick figures worth 5/37 from nine overs. Foulkes finished with match figures worth 9/75, having bowled a total of 25 overs (7 maidens).
As per ESPNcricinfo, Foulkes went past William O’Rourke’s match tally of 9/93 versus South Africa in Hamilton, 2024 to record the best match figures on debut in Tests.
Here are best match figures on Test debut for New Zealand:
- Zakary Foulkes – 9/75 vs Zimbabwe (Bulawayo, 2025)
- William O’Rourke – 9/93 vs South Africa (Hamilton, 2024)
- Mark Craig – 8/188 vs West Indies (Kingston, 2014)
In addition to making the above record, Foulkes also registered the 2nd-best match figures by a New Zealand bowler against Zimbabwe in Tests. He is only behind former fast bowler Shane Bond, who clocked 10/99 in Bulawayo, 2005.
Here are best match figures for New Zealand vs Zimbabwe in Tests:
- Shane Bond – 10/99 in Bulawayo, 2005
- Zakary Foulkes – 9/75 in Bulawayo, 2025
- Matt Henry – 9/90 in Bulawayo, 2025
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