NEW DELHI – New Zealand are hot favourites to seal a place in the World Cup knockout round when they face minnows Canada on Sunday but will have to do it without injured skipper Daniel Vettori. Defeat in Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium would be a major shock for the Black Caps, who have a total of six points after thumping 10-wicket wins over Kenya and Zimbabwe, and a 110-run victory against Pakistan on Tuesday.
Their only blemish was a seven-wicket defeat against Australia. “No Dan Vettori, but no alarms. That should be the outcome of New Zealand’s penultimate group game at the World Cup against Canada at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium,” the New Zealand Herald said on Saturday. The paper reported that the absence of Vettori would likely mean an opportunity for either left-arm spinner Luke Woodcock or paceman Hamish Bennett.
But it warned the Black Caps should guard against complacency following Ireland’s shock win over England earlier in the tournament. “The players should be setting all expectations for the Canada game aside. If New Zealand assume the game to be a doddle, someone should roar loudly in their ears: ‘Ireland!'” Vice-captain Ross Taylor will lead the side into the match full of confidence after starring in his side’s win over Pakistan in Pallekele, smashing 131 in 124 balls after getting two early let-offs.
New Zealand hit an astonishing 100 runs from their final five overs with Nathan McCullum and Jacob Oram also joining in the batting blitz. Vettori left the field during the match after injuring his right knee while attempting to take a catch and missed the remainder of the game.
A scan showed he had a mild strain of his post cruciate ligament and he is targeting the final group match against Sri Lanka on March 18 for a return. Canada have no realistic chance of qualifying for the last eight but come into the match with confidence after registering their first win of the tournament against Group A whipping boys Kenya.
Aside from that win, Canada have had a tough tournament with three losses, crashing to overwhelming defeats to Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe before putting up more of a fight against Pakistan. But Canada captain Ashish Bagai said the victory over Kenya would spur his team to perform well in their remaining group matches.
squads
New Zealand: Daniel Vettori (capt), Hamish Bennett, James Franklin, Martin Guptill, Jamie How, Brendon McCullum, Nathan McCullum, Kyle Mills, Jacob Oram, Jesse Ryder, Tim Southee, Scott Styris, Ross Taylor, Kane Williamson, Luke Woodcock. Coach: John Wright
Canada: Ashish Bagai (capt), Rizwan Cheema, Harvir Baidwan, Nitish Kumar, Hiral Patel, Tyson Gordon, Henry Osinde, John Davison, Ruvindu Gunasekera, Parth Desai, Karl Whatham, Khurram Chohan, Jimmy Hansra, Zubin Surkari, Balaji Rao. Coach: Pubudu Dassanayake (SRI), Umpires: Bruce Oxenford (AUS) and Shavir Tarapore (IND), TV umpire: Steve Davis (AUS), Match referee: Roshan Mahanama (SRI), Match starts: 0400 GMT
Pitch conditions: The match is the first of the World Cup at the Wankhede Stadium, which hosts the final on April 2. It is a flat wicket that has been unused for the past two years due to renovation of the stadium but usually favours batsmen.
