Daryl Mitchell struck his seventh ODI century then suffered a groin injury as New Zealand opened their three-match series against West Indies with a tense seven-run win.

Mitchell spent the entirety of the Windies' innings in the dressing room after sustaining the issue, though his work was already done as he plundered 119 runs.

He guided the Black Caps to 269-7 in their innings, with their next highest-scorers – Devon Conway (49) and Michael Bracewell (35) – both failing to even make half his total.

Mitchell's score came off 118 deliveries and his wicket was the last taken by the tourists, with Sherfane Rutherford making a catch on the ropes off the bowling of Jayden Seales, who finished with team-best figures of 3-41.

And the hosts' total was ultimately one they could defend despite some battling performances from the Windies' batsmen – opener John Campbell (4) was the only one to fail to reach double figures, while six of the eight that took to the crease made at least 25 runs.

Alick Athanaze (29), Keacy Carty (32) and Shai Hope (37) helped keep West Indies' scoring steady if unspectacular early on, but it was Rutherford that really introduced some jeopardy with his score of 55 off 61 balls.

He fell to an excellent diving catch from Conway with five overs remaining, though Justin Greaves (38 not out) and Romario Shepherd (26 not out) ensured it would be a nervy finale.

A booming six from Shepherd off the bowling of Jacob Duffy left the Windies needing eight runs off two balls for victory, but the Black Caps bowler gave up just a single run from two high-pressure deliveries to seal a home win.

All smiles for tonight's ANZ Player of the Match, centurion Daryl Mitchell! #NZvWIN

 = @PhotosportNZ pic.twitter.com/pCYHEn68TN

— BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) November 16, 2025

Data Debrief: Mitchell the man of the moment

Mitchell's 119 accounted for a huge chunk of New Zealand's runs, as he plundered 12 fours and a pair of maximums, recording a strike rate of 100.84.

It was his fourth-highest score in the 50-over format, after making 134 and 130 against India in 2023, plus 129 versus Pakistan in the same year.