Tarouba: Staring at early elimination, New Zealand will look to dish out a much-improved show in a do-or-die clash against tournament co-hosts West Indies in the T20 World Cup here.
New Zealand suffered a batting collapse to be bowled out for 75 in 15.2 overs in a stunning 84-run loss to Afghanistan in their tournament-opener at the Providence Stadium. This loss dropped their run rate to -4.2, the lowest among the four teams in Group D, placing them at the bottom of the standings.
Now, they find themselves on the brink of a rare group stage exit -- an unexpected predicament for a team known for its remarkable consistency in World Cups, having reached the semi-finals in all six recent editions: the ODI World Cups of 2015, 2019, and 2023, and the T20 World Cups of 2016, 2021, and 2022.
Only two of their batters managed to score double digits and the Kane Williamson-led side will have to buck up as a batting unit to pose any challenge to the local favourites.
It's not just the batting, their fielding also put them down as they dropped easy chances, missed stumping and run-out as the Afghanistan opening duo of Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran set it up with a solid 103-run opening stand.
West Indies on the other hand face no such issues as a Super Eight berth will be up for grabs if they manage to secure a third win on the trot. Having started off with a scrappy win over Papua New Guinea, WI have started to come on their own and coasted to a 134-run victory after bowling out Uganda for 39 in their previous match.
Teams
West Indies: Rovman Powell (c), Brandon King, Johnson Charles, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Sherfane Rutherford, Andre Russell, Romario Shepherd, Roston Chase, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie, Obed McCoy, Shamar Joseph, Shimron Hetmyer and Shai Hope.
New Zealand: Kane Williamson (c), Finn Allen, Devon Conway (wk), Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson, Trent Boult, Tim Southee, Ish Sodhi, James Neesham and Rachin Ravindra.
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