This is the match of the tournament for Zimbabwe. Unfortunately Ahmedabad is not a venue where Zimbabwe has had a great deal of success in recent times; the 171 vs Australia being Zim's highest score there since 2000. New Zealand have no players remaining from the last time they played there (1996) so knowledge of the conditions might be one thing in Zimbabwe's favour.
Fri Mar 4 - Sunny forecast
04:00 GMT | 09:30 local
12:00 WST | 14:30 CST | 15:00 EST
8 of 19 teams have successfully chased a total there suggesting batting first might be the way to go. The pitch used in the Australia game had a bit of grass on it, so the optimist in me says bat first and let Coventry and Taylor make good use of the ball coming on to the bat. Generally I like Zimbabwe to bat second, but New Zealand's attack doesn't have the same sort of heat that the Aussies do so hopefully the shots can be a bit more controlled against pace bowling. Score 260+ and put New Zealand under a bit of pressure, bringing back memories of their recent whitewash in Bangladesh.
I would go with an unchanged lineup also. They key for Zimbabwe's batsmen is to play out Vettori and not get weirded out by the bowling action Hamish Bennett. For the bowlers McCullum, Taylor, Ryder, and Vettori are the key wickets. Get them out cheaply and the game is Zimbabwe's to win.
Neil Johnson, Alistair Campbell, Murray Goodwin, Andy Flower (w), Grant Flower, Dave Houghton, Guy Whittall, Heath Streak (c), Andy Blignaut, Ray Price, Eddo Brandes
This'll be a good game I'm really looking forward to it.
I'd like to see Duffin in opposed to Coventry. He's so hit and miss, and in a big game like this you need a batter who's solid at the top, alongside the attacking player of Brendan Taylor. In addition it brings a lef hand right hand combination.
The bowlers and fielders have done nothing wrong in this tournament so far, now's not the time to slip up
NZ v Zim has come up several times on Sky Sports coverage in the UK since the Canada game. General expectation is that Zim can win this - I'd maybe go so far as to say there's a growing expectation that we should win this, with NZ's ability to play spin being dismissed as not good at all.
Nothing like the weight of expectations to crush a side, though.
I am not sure why so many are so quick to write off New Zealand. We aren't that bad. This is going to be a tough game for me - better hope for the tie.
Neil Johnson, Alistair Campbell, Murray Goodwin, Andy Flower (w), Grant Flower, Dave Houghton, Guy Whittall, Heath Streak (c), Andy Blignaut, Ray Price, Eddo Brandes
this is actually a play in game for the QF round. its gonna be a cracker of a contest. i'm prolly gonna watch this while i wait for Bangladesh to send West Indies packing. don't let anything fool you, some of the best games in sports are the uglier contests.
this is a game in which both sides have great spin bowling attacks and are also full of batsmen who ironically don't know how to play spin. Had this match been played in Bangladesh neither side would score more than 150 and the game would be finished inside 80 overs. India's flat tracks might prolong the anticipation however.
maehara wrote:...I'd maybe go so far as to say there's a growing expectation that we should win this, with NZ's ability to play spin being dismissed as not good at all.
This game is ours to throw away and we are very capable of doing just that. Our bowling has been arguably one of the best team performances in the tournament, so no real worries there, the guys just have to remain focused. The bat has a few concerns though: Chappy, Skipper and BT will have to perform. Bear in mind that New Zealand has a decent pace attack in their armoury and will set out to rattle our openers and middle order the same way Oz did. Taylor has been spared the guillotine enough times now, he will have to show that he is our premier batsman. Another thing, I am not comfortable with Chigs batting at 5, I think he needs to come after Williams at 6, Utseya and Cremer can provide good support to him.
I don't wan to see Coventry opening the batting.
We have a specialist opener in Terry Duffin in our squad, why not use him. He's solid, and regardless of what others think, he scores runs! If we're going to play Coventry, he should play in the middle order and provide the fireworks towards the end of the innings since Chiggs is failing with the bat.
If he opens, and he fails again, I think it's the curtain call on Charles Coventry's internationla career, despite his undoubted potential
OK I'm going to bed early so I can wake up for this. I must say I'm NOT confident at all. Let's hope the boys can prove me wrong. With Bangladesh and Ireland and to lesser extent Canada (against Pakistan) giving a good account of themselves, we can't afford to be left behind.
