New Zealand Twenty20 World Cup Team

New Zealand Team - Twenty20 World Cup New Zealand was one of the first countries to embrace Twenty20 Cricket, and has since proven to be amongst the toughest competitors in the shortened version of the game. The Black Caps have all the ingredients for success including experience, talented young players and strong leadership.

Twenty20 World Cup History

New Zealand performed impressively at the 2007 World Cup of Cricket and brought this good form into the Twenty20 World Cup. The Black Caps were drawn into a weak group and easily qualified for the Super Eights with a victory over Kenya. In the Super Eights New Zealand became the only team to beat eventual champions, India, at the tournament.

The Super Eights also saw New Zealand defeat England before they lost to South Africa. Despite this loss, New Zealand qualified for the semifinals of the Twenty20 World Cup, where they played Pakistan. The Black Caps proved to be no match for the Pakistanis and lost the semifinal by a substantial margin.

New Zealand looked to be on course for another strong performance at the Twenty20 World Cup in 2009. The Black Caps qualified for the Super 8s courtesy of a soft draw which put them through to the second round after securing a single win against Scotland. The team was unimpressive in the Super 8′s however, winning just one match and failing to reach the semifinals.

Strengths and Weaknesses

New Zealand cricket currently boasts a strong, established batting line-up supplemented by some exceptional young talents. The side generally has an air of maturity and has the experience and ability to handle high-pressure situations.

The Black Caps look most vulnerable in their bowling line up. Since losing the services of world-class fast bowler Shane Bond, the side has struggled to back up its strong batting with penetration and power in the bowling department. The side relies heavily on spin bowler Daniel Vettori, who despite his undoubted skill, is not ideally suited to the brutal batting of the Twenty20 game.