Six wins out of six, going their merry way, the last thing New Zealand will want is to trip up in the first knockout match. The West Indies are certainly a team capable of knocking New Zealand off their stride, which makes the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 quarterfinal in Wellington an intriguing one.
New Zealand have lived up to the billing pretty well so far, but they were tested quite a bit in their last game, with Bangladesh forcing out a few chinks in their armoury.
When the bowling is not as effective, and with a biggish score to chase, New Zealand can be put under pressure, and that should be the West Indies plan as well, to win the toss, put a big score on the board and force a few mistakes out of the Black Caps batsmen.
West Indies only just qualified for the quarterfinals, beating the UAE by a big enough margin to ensure their net run rate would stay over Pakistan and Ireland's. Pakistan ended up winning their match against the Irish and with it moving up to third, leaving West Indies fourth in Pool B and a quarterfinal against the table-toppers of Pool A.
"We always believed from the time the tournament started, the first goal was to reach the quarterfinals," said Darren Sammy. "After that you're two games away from a World Cup final. We've won two [World Cups], it's been a long time, but New Zealand have not won any.
"I just watched the guys warm-up and it's a different feel. It's the business end. You could win all your games then coming into the knockout there's no guarantee you're going to win."
New Zealand certainly know their six straight wins at this CWC so far will be utterly pointless if they don't step up to the plate in the quarterfinals. If the Black Caps play well with bat and ball, they should be able to beat the West Indies, but what cannot be denied is that the team from the Caribbean have matchwinners, who can take the game away from anyone.
The bowling will be key for New Zealand. If Trent Boult and Tim Southee get that ball talking and the wicket column constantly moving, the home team will play the semifinal against South Africa.
"If West Indies turn up and someone plays a matchwinning innings that's good enough to overcome us at our best, then I can live with that," said New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum. "That's just how the game is played.
"But I'm still confident we've got the team, even if we don't have the perfect trip, where we still a chance of being there at the finish. You can't be fearful of anything in this game, it's a competition between two teams and a competition between bat and ball, you can't be too worried about the emotions and just deal with a game as it unfolds."
New Zealand have not just been winning games by doing whatever it takes to get over the line; they have been winning by playing an attacking brand of cricket that has every neutral and of course their own fans cheering for them. A full crowd is expected at the Westpac Stadium, and they will definitely expect another ripping performance from the Black Caps.
"It's the greatest time of our lives," added McCullum. "The brand of cricket has really captivated New Zealand and is starting to make people around the world sit up and take notice as well. We love the fact we are playing in front of big crowds and have had the support we've had from our country.
"Hopefully it continues for another week or so yet. The guys have had some incredible experiences and it's the type of thing you don't want finishing any time soon."
Where to Watch Live
Get the Story on Martin Guptill's Double Hundred HERE
Get the Match Report HERE
Get the Full Scorecard of the Match HERE
The final quarterfinal match is scheduled for a 2 pm local time (6.30 am IST, 1 am GMT, 8 pm ET) start with live coverage in India on Star Sports. Audience in India can also watch the match via live streaming online on Starsports.com or Star Sports Live Pro.
Audience in New Zealand will be able to watch the game live on Sky TV or live stream on Sky Go NZ. US viewers can catch the game live on ESPN, while the action can also be live streamed on ESPN Cricket.
Viewers in the UK can tune into Sky Sports 2 to watch the match live or via live streaming on Sky Go and Watch Sky Sports. Australia viewers can watch the match live on Fox Sports or via live stream on Foxtel and Cricket Australia Live.
