Santner takes four as New Zealand win by nine wickets
But while the bowlers had excelled, he said the batting could have been better.
Led by fast bowler Matt Henry, New Zealand bowled out Zimbabwe for 149 and 165 and needed only eight runs to win after taking a first innings lead of 158.
Henry was named player of the match, taking nine wickets for 90 runs across the two innings.
"There was more in it (the pitch) than we thought. We held our lengths and lines," said Santner, who captained New Zealand for the first time in a Test in the absence of Tom Latham with a shoulder injury.
It was New Zealand's first Test match of the year and Henry's performance came immediately after a triangular Twenty20 series won by New Zealand in Harare, where Henry was player of the tournament.
"With the chop and change in formats, you've got to trust the work you've put in," said Henry. "When you have assistance (from conditions), it was great we were able to exploit it."
New Zealand were bowled out for 307 in their first innings, with the only major contributions coming from Devon Conway (88) and Daryl Mitchell (80).
"We could have batted a bit better," said Santner. "We had good intent. We talked about getting partnerships together but didn't have many significant ones."
Santner said there was concern about the condition of seamer Nathan Smith, who took three for 20 in the first innings of just his third Test but could not take the field in the second innings because of an abdominal injury.
"I feel for him. He bowled so well in the first innings but it doesn't look good for him," said Santner.
'GRIND IT OUT'
Zimbabwe captain Craig Ervine said his batsmen had shown more application than they did in two recent Tests against South Africa in Bulawayo.
"There was a fair bit in the wicket but the guys tried to grind it out," he said.
Ervine said a key passage of play was on the first evening when Conway and Will Young put on 92 without loss for the first wicket despite Zimbabwe bowling well.
"I haven't seen as much lateral movement as there was here for a while. We could have easily picked up two or three (wickets)."
Santner took four for 27 in the second innings, while Henry and Will O'Rourke picked up three wickets each
Veteran left-handers Sean Williams (49) and Craig Ervine (22) shared a fifth wicket stand of 57, while wicketkeeper Tafadzwa Tsiga (27) and fast bowler Blessing Muzarabani (19) put on 36 for the ninth wicket to make New Zealand bat again.
New Zealand were hampered by the absence of Smith and O'Rourke, who was feeling stiffness after his morning spell.
The teams meet again in the second Test at the same venue from Thursday. The two-match series is not part of the World Test Championship. -- AFP
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