Chennai, February 8 Tim Seifert smashed a 42-ball 65 as New Zealand opened their T20 World Cup campaign with a five-wicket win over Afghanistan here on Sunday.
Batting first, Gulbadin Naib (63) smashed a fine fifty as Afghanistan posted 182 for six. Sediqullah Atal (29) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (27) also made useful contributions.
In reply, New Zealand cruised to victory in 17.5 overs with Seifert (65) and Glenn Phillips (42) scoring the bulk of the runs.
Brief Scores:
Afghanistan: 182 for six in 20 overs (Gulbadin Naib 63; Lockie Ferguson 2/32)
New Zealand: 183 for 5 in 17.5 overs (Tim Seifert 65; Mujeeb Ur Rahman 2/31)