In 87 years of international cricket since New Zealand played their first Test in 1930, the only tournament they have won was when they beat India in the final of the 2000 Champions Trophy. However, they had a splendid run in the 2015 World Cup where they reached the final and eventually lost to Australia.
Batsmen Ross Taylor senses this New Zealand side can put the runners-up tag to bed despite being only fourth in the One-Day International rankings behind South Africa, Australia and India and just ahead of England. But they have a tough ask with Australia, England and Bangladesh in their group.
The Kiwis open their encounter against arch-rivals Australia in what can be coined as a World Cup final repeat. An intriguing battle is on the cards, led by two technically sound captains, Steve Smith and Kane Williamson. Both are world-class performers with the bat, but they go about their task in different manners when it comes to leading their sides.
New Zealand will enter the game at Edgbaston with renewed confidence after their six-wicket warm-up win over Sri Lanka at the same venue. The Black Caps chased down a mammoth 357-run target with a good 23 balls to spare. Opener Martin Guptill found his form with a blazing century.
Past history:
In the 2013 Champions Trophy, they bowed out of the group stage and will look to make amends. After bagging the trophy in 2000, they made the semi-finalists in 2006 and were finalists in 2009. Given their current form they are the dark horse in their group.
Players to watch out for:
The deadly trio of Martin Guptill, Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor is New Zealand’s strength. However, their bowling attack, led by Trent Boult, have the capability of being the deadliest on its day. They are among the finest cricketers in the world. New Zealand will hope their batsmen get their act together.
“The players have played together for so long now we know each other so well. Our depth is probably our strength. But we need to start well. We have two hard matches straight up against Australia and England and if we don’t start well the tournament’s over,” says Ross Taylor.
Squad: Kane Williamson (capt), Corey Anderson, Trent Boult, Neil Broom, Colin de Gradhomme, Martin Guptill, Tom Latham, Mitchell McClenaghan, Adam Milne, James Neesham, Jeetan Patel, Luke Ronchi (wk), Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor.
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