Here’s an interesting cricket-related trivia – Since the start of 2011, New Zealand have qualified for the semifinals in four out of six 50-over ICC tournaments. In some of those tournaments, New Zealand perhaps weren’t one of the favourites to reach the last-four stage, but they still carved out a path and made it to the semifinals. That tells us more about the resourcefulness of the side and how they seem to punch above their weight.
Just going by how New Zealand are performing in the ongoing tri-series in Pakistan, they seem to be again peaking at the right time for the Champions Trophy, to be held in Pakistan and the UAE. On some excellent pitches for batting, the likes of Kane Williamson, Glenn Phillips, Devon Conway, Daryl Mitchell and co. have all been among the runs. Meanwhile, Michael Bracewell, Matt Henry and Mitchell Santner have bene among the wickets. More importantly, their players now have a feel of the prevailing conditions in Pakistan.
In the past, too, New Zealand have played it smart as far as chiseling out ways to acclimatise to the prevailing conditions. For instance, in 2021, they partook in a Test series against England before the World Test Championship final. The resultant outcome was it helped them to usurp India in the summit clash and hoist the inaugural World Test Championship mace.
There could be other reasons too behind New Zealand lifting their game for ICC events. The cricketing world is mostly centered around the Big Three – India, Australia and England. An ICC event is a platform for supposedly lesser teams like New Zealand to showcase their skills. In other words, motivation can come in all shapes and sizes.
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The best part of the current New Zealand squad for the Champions Trophy is they seem to have the right blend of youth and experience, which makes them serious contenders. The likes of Williamson, Mitchell, Phillips and Ravindra form the core of a strong batting unit. Conway might have lost his place in the Test side, but he is still a force to reckon with in limited-overs cricket. The southpaw showcased some of his skills in the ODI versus South Africa, scoring a brisk 97. Meanwhile, Mark Chapman has had enough success on his previous tours to Pakistan.
Santner, Bracewell and Phillips don’t just provide enough depth in the spin department, but they also add buffer to the batting unit. Phillips’ counter-attack in the tri-series game versus Pakistan further substantiates his credentials as a power-hitter down the order.
With Ben Sears and William O’Rourke in the mix, New Zealand have a couple of young fast bowlers who don’t just bowl with good pace but can also hit the deck hard. On the other hand, Matt Henry has taken over the mantle of leading the pace attack from Trent Boult and Tim Southee. Ravindra’s freak injury in Lahore and Tom Latham’s lack of runs are the only two minor concerns of the New Zealand set-up.
So, can New Zealand go all the way and emulate the heroics of Chris Cairns and Co.? The context to that is around 25 years ago, in the ICC Knockout tournament, an injured Cairns had powered New Zealand to their only ICC limited-overs trophy so far. The Kiwis would believe they have a fair chance of repeating that performance.
Also Read: New Zealand and Bangladesh – A bird’s-eye view of the two squads