Confident Kiwis target Aussies by Cricket Archive Staff Reporter

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Player:

JDP Oram, SB Styris

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DateLine: 1st February 2007

 

Blistering batting has propelled New Zealand to the brink of the finals of the triangular one-day series - now they have their sights set on upsetting the unbeaten Australians.

 

The Black Caps appear certain to face the home side in the tri-series finals after their 58-run win over a besieged England at Perth's WACA ground on Tuesday. With Scott Styris flying in to further strengthen their squad, Jacob Oram in the best form of his career and recalled opener Lou Vincent talking tough, the Kiwis are certainly looking forward to the challenge of playing the World Cup favourites. Black Caps captain Stephen Fleming said an overdue victory over Australia would be timely, just over a month away from one-day cricket's biggest tournament, in the West Indies. Fleming had barely walked off the field at the WACA and he was already looking forward to next Sunday's clash with the Australians, who are set to unleash speedster Shaun Tait on the Kiwis at the MCG, in Melbourne. "There is a goal to get to the finals, but beating Australia is pretty appealing," he said here on Tuesday. "We've played some good cricket, but we'd love to beat Australia, not only to cement a finals spot but to continue playing well and build some good momentum. We want to beat Australia in Melbourne. That is going to be a great day and we are looking forward to playing there." With Vincent branding the Australians "arrogant" on New Zealand radio, the rivalry between the two sides is simmering after two close matches and they meet again in New Zealand after the tri-series finals. Fleming said the Kiwis were full of confidence after posting the second and third-highest one-day international scores at the WACA in the space of three days. "It is nice to get a good surface to play on and get a bit of confidence. We have been tentative and lacking confidence, but players like Lou, Ross Taylor and Jacob have stood up and that makes the difference." Oram injured himself during Tuesday's win, landing heavily when he dived for a catch in the outfield. He left the field and did not appear to be moving as freely when he returned, failing to add to the five overs he had already bowled. However, he took another diving catch from the last ball of the match and Fleming said the big man did not appear to have suffered a serious injury. "It has happened before, so it was a bit of deja vu," he said. "We were pretty happy to see him come running around towards the end. He might be a little bit bruised, but with a few days to recover we are pretty confident it is nothing too serious." New Zealand are five points ahead of England, with four points available for a win, and both sides have two games left. The English, with one win all tour and just eight in their past 33 one-day internationals, need to win their final two games to have any realistic hope of reaching the finals.