NZ vs South Africa: Quick Pre-Game Thoughts

In our preview of NZ's chances in the World Cup, both Mykuhl and I did in fact predict that NZ would meet South Africa in the quarters (OK, I felt India or South Africa, but anyway). Mykuhl leaned towards a South African choke while I expect a NZ defeat, so likely one of us will be proved wrong by the end of day. Uncomfortable feeling in the pit of stomach begins.

NZ's build up has mainly centered around the availability of Daniel Vettori and Kyle Mills. While Vettori is all but certain to play (though I wonder how much of an effect lack of matchplay would have on him), it looks like Mills will miss out and that's a huge blow; Daryl Tuffey is all we can do as a replacement. God knows the attack needed Vettori and Mills, but really it's the batsmen on whom the onus is on. Two crap performances against Australia and Sri Lanka, to go with one excellent effort against the Pakistanis. As in the Pakistan game, one of the top four has to go on and get a century if NZ are to keep up with South Africa. I'm picking Guptill.

For me it'd be a major upset if we were to win, but I'd still like to see a fighting display from the lads, especially the batsmen. Overall, we have performed to expectation in this world cup by reaching the quarters, and even surpassed it by beating Pakistan impressively. With just about everybody having written us off, the best approach would be to ignore pressure completely, go out there and play with freedom. Planning and analysing too much would probably play into the Saffers' hands.