ANALYSIS: The Black Caps let a small slice of history slip from their grasp in the third and final Twenty20 against the West Indies in Jamaica.
But with their action in cricket’s shortest format before the naming of their World Cup squad now complete, continuity has them in a strong position as they aim to go one better than their second-place finish at last year’s event.
In the third T20 at Sabina Park in Kingston, the Black Caps only mustered 145-7 from their 20 overs, a total the West Indies proceeded to chase down with eight wickets in hand and an over to spare.
Ramon Espinosa/AP
Michael Bracewell has been the big winner in the Black Caps during their white-ball series across four different countries.
As a result, the Black Caps winning streak in all formats came to an end at a record-equalling 13 matches instead of stretching to a record-breaking 14.
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After winning their first-ever white ball series in the Caribbean with their 90-run demolition job in match two, a new record would have been another feather in the team’s cap.
Even if the fact that the first 11 wins were against Ireland (three one-day internationals and three T20s), Scotland (two T20s and an ODI) and the Netherlands (two T20s) does take some of the gloss off.
The start of the Black Caps’ T20 World Cup campaign – a trans-Tasman showdown at the Sydney Cricket Ground on October 22 – is just over two months away.
Their focus now turns to the 50-over format, where they have a three-match series against the West Indies in Barbados and a three-match series against Australia in Cairns, both part of the ICC Cricket World Cup Super League, to navigate in the next month.
The T20 World Cup squad will be named before the team assembles in Christchurch at the start of October for a tri-series with Bangladesh and Pakistan, culminating in a final at Hagley Oval eight days before New Zealand’s tournament opener across the ditch.
When the series against the West Indies began last week, a full-strength Black Caps’ T20 lineup hadn’t been sighted since their loss to Australia in last year’s decider in the United Arab Emirates.
But after three matches – the first a 13-run win – where 12 players were used, it’s clear the preferred approach of coach Gary Stead, captain Kane Williamson and those around them hasn’t changed significantly from one major event to the next.
Clarity on roles is something cricketers routinely cite as a key factor when it comes to performance and the Black Caps shouldn’t have any concerns there, which will be a boost for their chance come October and November.
Lockie Ferguson is back after missing last year’s World Cup with an untimely injury, while Devon Conway has taken up opening the batting alongside Martin Guptill, with Daryl Mitchell, shoehorned in there at late notice in 2021, now sitting in the middle order.
The first-choice XI looks largely the same, barring that change in the batting order, but there are two players knocking on the door – one of whom appears to be closer to playing a part than the other.
That Finn Allen didn’t get a run across the three matches in Jamaica was a bit puzzling.
The 23-year-old clearly has plenty of potential as a power-hitting opener, but hasn’t faced opposition stronger than Bangladesh to date in his international career, and this would have been the perfect chance for him to do so.
Michael Bracewell played the last two matches as a spin-bowling option first and foremost, taking 3-15 off four overs of off-spin as the Black Caps won the second match and the series, then 0-14 off two as they lost the third.
Ramon Espinosa/AP
Black Caps batsman Glenn Phillips was named player of the series after their 2-1 win over the West Indies in Jamaica.
The Wellington Firebirds veteran has been the big winner from the team’s travels across five different countries over the past five weeks, but whether he has done enough to be a factor at the World Cup is another matter.
Using the same pitch at Sabina Park for all three T20s brought spinners to the fore, with seamers Lockie Ferguson and Trent Boult sitting out matches two and three respectively as the Black Caps went with a tweaker-heavy approach.
Conditions are unlikely to be the same in Australia, where the Black Caps are scheduled to play in Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide as well as Sydney, but a spin-bowling all-rounder remains a useful option for Stead and Williamson to have.
The defending champions will be short-odds favourites to defend their title on home soil, but no team has ever gone back to back at T20 World Cups and New Zealand are every chance of being in the mix come the semifinals.
Black Caps’ longest winning streaks
13 matches in 2022: 3 ODIs, 2 T20s v Ireland; 2 T20s, 1 ODI v Scotland; 2 T20s v Netherlands; 2 T20s v West Indies
13 matches in 2017-18: 2 tests, 3 ODIs, 2 T20s v West Indies; 5 ODIs v Pakistan; 1 T20 v Pakistan
11 matches in 2019: 1 T20 v India; 3 ODIs, 2 tests v Bangladesh; 5 ODIs at the World Cup
10 matches in 2016-17: 3 ODIs, 3 T20s, 2 tests v Bangladesh; 2 ODIs v Australia
10 matches in 2015: 2 ODIs v Pakistan; 8 ODIs at the World Cup
Continuity key for Black Caps ahead of T20 World Cup as record win streak eludes them & Latest News Update
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