West Indies v New Zealand – 5th ODI – Match Preview
Having secured the ODI series, 3-1, the final match, due to be played today on July 16, offers the West Indies an opportunity to end the series on a high, while New Zealand have a last chance to earn a consolatory win, at the Warner Park in Basseterre, St Kitts.
The Windies’ current series win was preceded by a 2-0 T20I victory and follows their last ODI series at home against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Zimbabwe-c3045) came in 2009, while their last Test series victory was in 2008-09. Their current form augurs well for the host team in the upcoming extended-overs leg of the tour against the Kiwis, and they will be looking to continue to assert their dominance in the final ODI.
New Zealand, meanwhile, have suffered a second consecutive series defeat, and continued their miserable run, which has seen them unable to win an ODI series against a Test-playing nation (other than Zimbabwe and http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Bangladesh-c747) since 2009. Their record in the extended-overs format presents a more desperate situation, with the Kiwis having won their last Test series in 2005-06. Despite the fact that the final ODI is a dead rubber, the Black Caps will be looking to salvage their pride and gather some confidence before they go into the extended-overs leg of the tour.
With the series already secure, the Windies might consider resting a few of their players for the final match. Chris Gayle, who has proved instrumental in the team’s victories so far, may sit this one out in order to give the fairly inexperienced http://www.senore.com/Cricket/LMP-Simmons-c1843 more practice at the top of the order.
23-year-old http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Johnson-Charles-c69060 will be opening the batting, looking for a substantial score which has continued to elude him throughout his brief career so far, with the opener having been unable to register a single half-ton in any of the international matches he has played.
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Devon-Cuthbert-Thomas-c53930, who contributed a useful 37 in the previous ODI, in addition to maintaining an 85-run partnership with Pollard, also emerges as a promising player.
The bowling attack features imposing figures such as Tino Best, who made a spectacular comeback by claiming 4 for 46 in the previous match, and Sunil Narine, who is currently the second-highest wicket-taker of the series, with 8 scalps to his credit. He also registered the ninth-most economical figures in ODI cricket for a West Indies spinner, with his 2 for 20 in the previous match.
New Zealand are likely to go in with an unchanged line-up – http://www.senore.com/Cricket/MJ-Guptill-c1980, who found himself dismissed on duck in the last match.
The much-awaited http://www.senore.com/Cricket/KS-Williamson-c1813, who stepped in for Taylor during the last few matches, needs to break out of an indifferent run which has seen him posting scores of 24, 58, 9, and 3 during the series so far.
In comparison, the Kiwis bowling attack looks more promising, with a capable spinner in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Doug-Bracewell-c1394 and Trent Boult, who has claimed 3 scalps in the two ODIs he has played in the series so far. Tim Southee has emerged as a vital cog in the Black Caps’ bowling attack, the third-highest wicket-taker in the series as yet, with 7 scalps to his name, while all-rounder Jacob Oram has also proved fairly effective, having managed figures of 2 for 22, and 3 for 42.
Both teams will be battling it out in Basseterre today, where the weather forecast predicts light showers and wind, with an estimated temperature of 26 - 31° C.
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/West-Indies-c760 playing XI (probable):
1 Johnson Charles, 2 http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sunil-Philip-Narine-c91869, 11 Tino Best
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/New-Zealand-c754 playing XI (probable):
1 Rob Nicol, 2 Martin Guptill, 3 Brendon McCullum, 4 http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Trent-Boult-c2708
Tags: