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New Zealand script their biggest win after Foulkes and Co flatten Zimbabwe

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Jacob Duffy got his maiden Test wicket [Zimbabwe Cricket]

Zakary Foulkes picked up the best figures by a New Zealand player on Test Debut as New Zealand recorded their biggest Test win. Their innings and 359 run victory over Zimbabwe emphasised the massive gulf between the two sides as Zimbabwe capitulated for their fourth-lowest score against New Zealand to suffer their heaviest defeat in the format.

After New Zealand declared overnight, with a lead of 476, Zimbabwe were bowled out in 28.1 overs in an extended first session. They have now lost their last six Tests and have been dismissed for under 170 in all four innings in this series. New Zealand finished their tour of Zimbabwe unbeaten, after winning all their matches in the T20I tri-series including the final, and both Tests.

Foulkes, who was called into the XI after injuries to Nathan Smith and Will O’Rourke, showed the wealth of New Zealand’s bowling depth with an incisive eight-over spell headlined by devastating inswing. He ensured Zimbabwe had no let up after Matt Henry and Jacob Duffy made the opening incisions and that stand-in captain Mitchell Santner was not required at all.

For Zimbabwe, technical questions over their batting remain. Their inability to cope with the moving ball, or genuine pace was exposed, more so when the two are in operation together. As has been the case throughout this series, only one batter made a score of note – Nick Welch’s 47 – there was only one other player who got into double figures and a highest partnership of just 25.

The damage started as early as the third ball when Brian Bennett walked straight into the trap set for him. After two balls that moved away, Henry brought the ball back into him. Bennett played down the wrong line and his middle stump was uprooted. Brendan Taylor scored the first runs when he guided Duffy’s delivery between point and gully but only lasted until the fifth over as he was caught in the crease to a fuller ball from Henry and edged to second slip.

Duffy, also on debut, found some extra bounce and Sean Williams could only get a leading edge as he tried to turn him leg-side. The ball went high and gave Duffy enough time to take the catch off his own bowling for his first Test wicket.

Welch and Craig Ervine showed some fight against the short ball before Ervine pushed at a full ball from Matthew Fisher and edged to third slip. He was dismissed in almost identical fashion in the first innings which suggests a pattern that Zimbabwe need to address. Similarly, Sikandar Raza’s glaring problem against the short ball continued. For the fourth time in the series, Raza was undone by one, this time as he fended off a delivery from Foulkes and was caught at gully. Raza was brought back into the squad after missing the South Africa Tests for the MLC and recorded scores of 2, 5, 5 and 4.

Foulkes had Tafadzwa Tsiga caught behind, playing at a ball that straightened on him and then produced two absolute peaches to bowl Vincent Masekesa and Trevor Gwandu. Both were clueless against deliveries that landed outside off, shaped back in and beat their defences to hit the stumps. It’s difficult to choose between them on quality and both could easily be labelled the best deliveries of the game. Blessing Muzarabani became Foulkes’ fifth when he top-edged him to square leg, where Santner took a comfortable catch. That wicket gave Foulkes match figures of 9 for 75.

Duffy thought he had wrapped up the innings when he had Tanaka Chivanga caught in the cordon but he had overstepped – the only mistake New Zealand made all morning. In his next over, Chivanga was caught at gully by Devon Conway, who is also the series’ leading run-scorer, to end the match five minutes before a delayed lunch would have been taken.

The defeat ends a long run of Test cricket for Zimbabwe for now. They have played eight Tests in 2025, and won one against Bangladesh, but have lost all their games at home. They will turn their attention to the T20 World Cup Qualifiers which Zimbabwe will host in September.

New Zealand leave Zimbabwe with a problem of plenty. Conway, Henry Nicholls and Rachin Ravindra all scored centuries while all their seamers were among the wickets. Henry’s 16 wickets in the series was the standout and he has established himself as a leader in the attack. New Zealand do not play any Tests until November-December this year, when they host West Indies to start their 2025-2027 World Test Championship campaign.

Brief scores:
New Zealand 601 for 3 decl in 130 overs (Devon Conway 153, Will Young 74, Jacob Duffy 36, Henry Nicholls 150*,  Rachin Ravindra 165*) beat Zimbabwe 125 in 48.5 overs  (Brendan Taylor 44, Tafadzwa Tsiga 33*; Matt Henry 5-40, Zakary Foulkes 4-38) and 117 in 28.1 overs (Nick Welch 47*;Matt Henry 2-16, Jacob Duffy 2-28, Zakary Foulkes 5-37) by an innings and 359 runs

[Cricinfo]



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Heat Index at ‘Caution Level’ in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Eastern, North-western, Northern and North-central provinces and in Monaragala district

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Warm Weather Advisory
Issued by the Natural Hazards Early Warning Centre
Issued at 3.30 p.m. on 30 March 2026, valid for 31 March 2026.

The Heat index, the temperature felt on human body is likely to increase up to ‘Caution level’ at some places in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Eastern, North-western, Northern and North-central provinces and in Monaragala district.

The Heat Index Forecast is calculated by using relative humidity and maximum temperature and this is the condition that is felt on your body. This is not the forecast of maximum temperature. It is generated by the Department of Meteorology for the next day period and prepared by using global numerical weather prediction model data.


Effect of the heat index on human body is mentioned in the above table and it is prepared on the advice of the Ministry of Health and Indigenous Medical Services.

ACTION REQUIRED
Job sites: Stay hydrated and takes breaks in the shade as often as possible.
Indoors: Check up on the elderly and the sick.
Vehicles: Never leave children unattended.
Outdoors: Limit strenuous outdoor activities, find shade and stay hydrated.
Dress: Wear lightweight and white or light-colored clothing.

Note:
In addition, please refer to advisories issued by the Disaster Preparedness & Response Division, Ministry of Health in this regard as well. For further clarifications please contact 011-7446491.

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Electricity tariffs to be increased from 1st April

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The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) has granted approval to increase electricity tariffs with effect from 1st  April .

The Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) requested a 13.56% electricity tariff revision  for the second quarter of this year.

The revision announced by the PUCSL for  domestic consumers:

0–30 units category, electricity tariffs will rise by 4.3%, 

31–60 units category, tariffs will rise by 6.9%, 

61–90 units category, tariffs will rise by 6.9%, 

91–120 units category, tariffs will rise by 7.2%, 

Above 180 units, electricity tariffs will rise by  25.3% 

The PUCSL has decided not to increase electricity tariffs for religious and charitable institutions that consume below 180 units monthly and a  9.6% increase for institutions that consume above 180 units.

Ectricity tariffs for the general and household consumer categories has been increased by 8%, while the electricity tariff increase for the industrial sector is 8.7%,  the increase in tariff for government institutions is 14.4%.

 

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Rickelton, Rohit, Shardul break Mumbai’s first-game jinx

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Ryan Rickelton and Rohit Sharma added 148 for the first wicket [Cricinfo]

Before Sunday, Mumbai Indians had never chased down a 220-plus target in their previous seven attempts. MI had never won their opening game of the IPL since 2012. On day two of IPL 2026,  MI broke two jinxes as they chased down 221 in 19.1 overs to begin their season with a comfortable six-wicket win over Kolkata Knight Riders. Rohit Sharma  wound back the clock, smashing 78 off 38 balls, while Ryan Rickelton thumped 81 off 43, the duo adding 148 runs for the opening wicket off 71 balls.

That KKR were coming into this opening game severely depleted on the bowling front was known. The extent of it was visible on Sunday night with Vaibhav Arora and Blessing Muzarabani toothless, Varun Chakravarthy ineffective and Sunil Narine a shadow of his former self.

At the halfway mark, KKR might have been happy reaching 220 for 4, their second-highest score against MI in the IPL. Ajinkya Rahane,  who at the toss said that he had “never seen so much of grass at Wankhede”, scored 67 off 40 balls while Angkrish Raghuvanshi, another Mumbai lad, made 51 off 29 as KKR breached the 220 mark. But against a KKR unit missing several of their frontline seamers, MI barely had any hiccups, completing the highest-successful IPL chase at the Wankhede with five balls to spare.

It was a typical Rohit innings that Wankhede has witnessed so many times, laced with some of the most pristine shots. He was on 12 off eight at one stage, but once in, he lit up Mumbai like only he can. Coming into the game, he had a strike rate of less than 100 against Varun in T20s. So, what did he do? He lofted the spinner inside-out over covers first ball and then lifted him for six the next ball. By the time the powerplay was done, Rohit had raced to a 23-ball fifty, his fastest in the IPL and MI’s chase was on course.

They raced to 80 in the first six, past 100 in 8.1 overs and by the time Rohit fell, thanks to a lovely catch by Anukul Roy running back from mid-off, MI’s required rate had gone below nine, which at the start of the innings was above 11 an over.

There were a few raised eyebrows when Rickelton was picked over the more experienced Quinton de Kock , but the former justified his selection. Rickelton needed just the first couple of overs to get a hang of the surface and once he did, there was no stopping him. He deposited Arora for back-to-back sixes, one over extra cover and then over deep midwicket, and that kickstarted a brutal takedown of the KKR bowlers.

While he saw Rohit do his thing in the powerplay, Rickelton took on Narine after the six-over mark. He slog swept him over deep midwicket in his first over and then launched him over the ropes twice in three balls in the next to raise a 24-ball fifty.

He didn’t stop there and only fell courtesy a stunning direct hit from the deep by Anukul. Suryakumar Yadav, the Impact Sub, came and went, but Hardik Pandya and Tilak Varma took MI closer. Hardik finished on an unbeaten 18 off 11 balls, while Naman Dhir hit the winning runs off Anukul as MI started their IPL 2026 in style.

Finn Allen brought his stellar form international cricket to the IPL. After facing five dot balls against Hardik, he went after MI debutant AM Ghazanfar, pumping him to the deep square fence and then spanking him for an 86-metre six over wide long-on. Another six capped off Ghazanfar’s opening over. Rahane then went after Hardik, thumping him for back-to-back sixes and Allen then got on strike and went 4, 4, 4. A monster 26-run over against Hardik helped KKR race past fifty in 3.5 overs, their fastest against MI in the IPL.

Shardul Thqkur, on MI debut, then brought his experience into play and sent back Allen who shoveled a slower length ball to long-off but Rahane carried on. He struck two fours off Thakur as KKR finished on 78 for 1 in six overs.

Two Mumbai boys on opposite ends were critical to their team’s cause. After removing Allen, Thakur sent back Cameron Green, whose innings lasted just ten balls and he then dismissed Rahane with a hard length delivery outside off that was mistimed to extra cover. At this point, KKR were still going at over ten an over but had lost steam, thanks to some terrific bowling from Bumrah, Trent Boult and Thakur.

Enter the other Mumbai boy, Raghuvanshi. He was on 17 off 14 at one stage but found a new lease of life after being dropped by Rohit at long-on. He closed out the 15th over with a four and six against Ghazanfar and then launched Thakur over long-on. Raghuvanshi added 60 off 30 balls with Rinku Singh for the fourth wicket, reaching his fifty off 28 balls as KKR raced past 200 in the 19th over.

Rinku struck unbeaten on 33 off 21 as KKR finished on 220 for 4 but it wasn’t enough.

Brief scores:
Mumbai Indians 221 for 4 in 19.1 overs (Ryan Rickelton 81, Rohit Sharma 78, Suryakumar Yadav 16, Tilak Varma 20, HardikPandya 18*; Vaibhav Arora 1-52, Kartik Tyagi 1-43, Sunil Narine 1-30) beat Kolkata Knight Riders 220 for 4 in 20 overs  (Ajinkya Rahane 67, Finn Allen 37, Cameron Green 18, Angkrish Raghuvanshi 51, Rinku Singh 33*; Hardik Pandya 1-39, Shardul Thakur 3-39)  by six wickets

[Cricinfo]

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