By Tony Becca, Senior Sport EditorPORT ELIZABETH:
THE WEST Indies continue their bid for a place in the Super Six second round of the 2003 World Cup of cricket when they take on New Zealand at St. George's Park tomorrow (at 3:00 a.m. Jamaica time).
Following their magnificent victory over South Africa in the opening match at Newlands on Sunday they are hot favourites to make it two in a row.
In a memorable performance starring Brian Lara, who scored a brilliant 116, Ricardo Powell and Ramnaresh Sarwan, who blasted 63 runs off 29 deliveries in an unbroken sixth-wicket partnership and pacer Vasbert Drakes, who, with the home team needing nine to win in the final over and Lance Klusener on fire, picked up two wickets while conceding only four runs, the West Indies demonstrated the quality of champions and are bouncing with confidence.
That is one reason why the West Indies are strong favourites. The other is because New Zealand, highly touted at the start of the tournament and tipped to make it to the second round, fell to Sri Lanka in Bloemfontein on Monday and are far from confident as they lick their wounds.
Why are they still not bubbling even though, with three teams from the group moving on and five matches to come, they are not yet in danger of falling by the wayside?
One reason is their poor start against Sri Lanka when they skidded to 15 for three chasing a target of 272.
After sitting in their hotel rooms and looking on, however, the main reason - the more important one - is the memory of Lara's brilliance, the hammering of South Africa's bowlers by Powell and Sarwan, the reality that the Windies line-up also includes not only the experienced Carl Hooper and Shivnarine Chanderpaul but also the explosive Christopher Gayle and Wavell Hinds.
Also, based on how they stood up and fought, they fear that the West Indies, champions in 1975 and 1979 and runners-up in 1983, are back and hungry.
Batting, however, is only a part of the game.
Apart from fielding, bowling is also a part of it - an important part at that, and although New Zealand may not know it, even though captain Hooper does not seem too concerned, the West Indies, having come down from 'Cloud Nine' and looking ahead, have their fears.
"No," said Hooper yesterday when asked if he was thinking of a fourth specialist bowler. "If you look at it, our fourth specialist bowler has been going for five or six an over and sometimes more than Gayle, Powell and (Marlon) Samuels. So what's the sense? At least the seventh batsman will also give us some runs."
Hooper did say, however, that he will look at the pitch which, according to Drakes, should be slow, and then decide.
However, remembering what Sir Vivian Richards, chairman of the selectors, said minutes after the West Indies' narrow escape despite scoring 278, the West Indies are not too confident as far as their bowling is concerned.
"Wow, that was close," said Richards. "We probably were short of a bowler".
One bowler short or not, the West Indies are expected to go into the match with an unchanged team - with only three specialist bowlers in pacers Mervyn Dillon, Pedro Collins and Drakes.
