Veteran Kyle Mills claimed three wickets and Rob Nicol snared four wickets and two catches as New Zealand beat Zimbabwe by 90 runs in the one-day cricket international in Dunedin on Friday.
Mills knocked the top off the Zimbabwe innings and he took his total of one-day international victims to 195 on a lively pitch at the University Oval.
Nicol failed with the bat, making a five-ball duck, but he atoned with sharp slips catches to dismiss Regis Chakabva and Shingirai Masakazda and the wickets of Brendan Taylor, Malcolm Waller, Keegan Meth and Kyle Jarvis with his off-spin.
The match was played in fine but windy conditions before a crowd of 3,217 and Zimbabwe struck an early blow by winning the toss and electing to bowl on a grassy pitch which had pace and bounce.
Zimbabwe made a horror start to their quest to overhaul New Zealand's 248 and were reduced to 3-15 after 6.1 overs.
Stuart Matsikenyeri was lbw in Kyle Mills' first over, Hamilton Masakazda was run out by a direct throw from Andrew Ellis at mid-on and Regis Chakabva become Mills second victim after a sharp catch by Rob Nicol at slip.
Brendan Taylor and Tatenda Taibu stablished the innings with a stand of 52 before Taibu, who had made 20 of 39 balls, holed out to mid-off to give Ellis his first international wicket.
Taylor reached 4000 runs in one-day internationals when he got to 50 and he brought up his 25th half-century off 60 balls with few alarms.
He celebrated by lofting Nicol over the grandstand at wide long-on for a huge six, the first of the match.
But the next ball he went to repeat the shot but lofted a catch to Ellis on the long-off boundary. He had made 58 off 68 balls with eight fours and a six and Zimbabwe were 97 for seven.
Zimbabwe were deeper in the mire when Malcolm Waller was lbw to Nicol - New Zealand gained the decision on referral - at 6-110 after 28 overs and that became 7-119 when Elton Chigumbura was out to a fine reflex caught and bowled by Doug Bracewell.
Shingirai Masakazda was well caught at slip by Nicol of Mills to make it 8-122, it was 9-156 when Meth was lbw to Nicol and Zimbabwe were all out for 158 when Jarvis was stumped off Nicol.
Earlier, New Zealand's innings proceeded briskly but wickets and momentum were lost at crucial times before they were all out for 248 after 48.3 overs.
Five batsmen made 20 or more but only the in-form Martin Guptill, who made 70 from 66 calls, scored substantially.
New Zealand seemed well placed to score more than 300 as Guptill and Kane Williamson settled into a third-wicket partnership of 88 at five an over but no one was able to take control after Guptill was out at 4-130.
Tom Latham looked good in making 24 off 33 balls, striking two boundaries through the covers for his first scoring strokes, as did fellow Cantabrian debutant Ellis, who made 33 off 30.
Ellis and Nathan McCullum added 57 for the seventh wicket but the home side lost their last four wickets for 25 to pacemen to Kylie Jarvis and Shingirai Masakadza as the innings came to a lame end.
Masakadza took four for 46, career-best analysis, and Jarvis and Chigumbura each took two wickets.
There was disappointment for Otago fans when Brendon McCullum was lbw to Jarvis for three off three balls, the ball adjudged to be clipping the off bail.
New Zealand was 5-150 after 30 overs but the innings lacked both a sheet-anchor and a dominant batsman after the dismissal of Guptill.