World Cup 2015 QF 4 New Zealand vs West Indies; Chance for West Indies to cause an upset

World Cup 2015 QF 4 New Zealand vs West Indies; Chance for West Indies to cause an upset:

Date: 21 March 2015       Time: 0630 IST
Venue: Wellington
New Zealand

New Zealand, co-hosts of the World Cup march into the quarter-finals with an unbeaten record in the ICC World Cup 2015, having produced the kind of cricket that went from one end of the spectrum to another, from slam-bang, swashbuckling to  scrambling, last-ditch attempts. The Kiwis went from perennial under dogs to tournament favorites in last 18 months. Their style of playing has also brought in crowds to the scenic venues across the country in droves, taking pride in their team’s performance and supporting them in hordes and praying that they bring home the elusive World Cup crown.

Brendon McCullum is the primary reason for New Zealand’s daredevilry. The captain has giving those blazing starts, but the last couple of games brought out other heroes in the team. Leading up to the tournament, even the likes of Luke Ronchi and Grant Elliott showed their prowess down the order. Corey Anderson’s wicket taking knack though has been one of the surprises of the tournament while veteran spinner Daniel Vettori has been reliable as ever, providing the bowling department some really good support.

Only concern for them is Ross Taylor who looked a little rusty. Martin Guptill got a big ton against Bangladesh and it couldn’t have come at a better time for the Black Caps. The Boult-Southee axis are fit and firing in all cylinders while tear away pacer Adam Milne, despite not being among the wickets, has played the supporting role to the full.

Road to quarterfinals

New Zealand (Won 6, Lost 0, Tie 0)

1. Beat Sri Lanka by 98 runs

2. Beat Scotland by 3 wickets

3. Beat England by 8 wickets

4. Beat Australia by 1 wicket

5. Beat Afghanistan by 6 wickets

6. Beat Bangladesh by 3 wickets

West Indies

West Indies will have to thank Pakistan for beating Ireland for their qualification. They had mixed start to their campaign losing to Ireland but beating Pakistan impressively. They lost to India and South Africa spectacularly, but qualified thanks to wins over Zimbabwe and UAE. They have a tough task facing a rampaging New Zealand in the knockouts.

The strength of West Indies is Chris Gayle, Marlon Samuels and their batting. If these all fire, West Indies are golden. If they don’t, the onus of making runs falls on Denesh Ramdin, Lendl Simmons and Darren Sammy. Their bowling hopes lie on Kemar Roach, Jason Holder and in form Jerome Taylor. New Zealand can be contained with good spin and hence West Indies will look to play a good spinner in either Benn or Miller to help them. But the small Westpac Stadium will be a challenge to both fast bowlers and spinners and it will rally test their abilities to contain New Zealand’s batting.

West Indies know they are not the favorites to win against New Zealand and that may work in their favors as they can play without any pressure and give their best against New Zealand and find a way to get themselves into the semi-finals.

Road to quarterfinals

West Indies (Won 3, Lost 3, Tie 0)

1. Lost to Ireland by 4 wickets.

2. Beat Pakistan by 150 runs.

3. Beat Zimbabwe by 73 runs (D/L method).

4. Lost to South Africa by 257 runs.

5. Lost to India by 4 wickets

6. Beat United Arab Emirates by 6 wickets

Possible playing XI:
West Indies: Darren Sammy, Marlon Samuels, Chris Gayle, Dwayne Smith, Jonathan Carter, Kemar Roach, Jason Holder (C),  Denesh Ramdin (WK), Nikita Miller, Andre Russell, Jerome Taylor

New Zealand: Brendon McCullum (C), Corey Anderson, Trent Boult, Grant Elliott, Martin Guptill, Nathan McCullum, Kyle Mills, Luke Ronchi (WK), Tim Southee, Ross Taylor, Kane Williamson.