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09-Jun-2009 11:07:00 GMT
ICC Twenty20 World Cup, 2009

New Zealand v South Africa at Lords, London - Preview

London: South Africa coach Mickey Arthur has insisted his side will be at full strength for their ICC World Twenty20 group game against New Zealand even though it is a 'dead' tie.

Both Test teams have assured their qualification out of Group D after contrasting wins over minnows Scotland.

And with their second phase Super Eight programme already mapped out for them, there is no reward in terms of an 'easier' draw for the winners of Tuesday's match at Lord's.

But Arthur still intends playing his strongest team against the Black Caps, having seen South Africa start the tournament with a 130-run thrashing of Scotland - a side that gave New Zealand a scare before succumbing to a seven-wicket loss in a match reduced by rain to seven overs per side.

"Everybody is 100 percent fit," said Arthur at the Oval here on Monday. We will be playing our full side. We know what our best combination is.

"We want those guys to play together more and more and to get more and more confidence for the bigger games that lie ahead.

He added: "We want to win, we want to win convincingly and take that confidence forward. As much as winning is a habit, losing is a habit and we certainly don't want to be losing any games.

"We might have a little odd tweak in our batting order to give a guy who we know is going to have a crucial role through the tournament a little more batting time but that's all."

New Zealand are set to provide a more accurate guide to the Proteas' potency at this tournament. But for the second match in a row they could be without captain Daniel Vettori.

The left-arm spinner was due to undergo a scan later on Monday on the shoulder injury that kept him out of the Scotland game and, with little riding on the outcome of the South Africa clash, seemed unlikely to be risked at Lord's.

"I think Vettori is a big loss. I'm not sure if he is going to turn out tomorrow (Tuesday)," said Arthur.

"He is a major bowler in this form of the game, he is right up there with the best in the world.

"Conditions are showing that spinners are going to play a major role through the competition, so New Zealand with Vettori in it is a really good unit.

However, Arthur was quick to stress that, even without Vettori, New Zealand still had several other "game-breakers: "Brendon McCullum is really dangerous, Jesse Ryder, Ross Taylor offer a huge amount with the bat."

In the meantime he said no-one in the South African camp was getting carried away with the scale of their victory over Scotland.

"I said to the guys it was a solid performance," Arthur recalled. "We expect to win well against those sorts of teams. There are going to be a lot of sterner tests coming our way in the next couple of weeks."

Stand-in Kiwi skipper McCullum agreed with Arthur that the absence of Vettori would be a blow to the Black Caps.

"Hopefully with 36 hours between games he will be fit," McCullum said.

"But we are all fingers crossed that we get such a good player, and our captain, back for the next game and the duration of the tournament."

Team News

New Zealand The captain Daniel Vettori is likely to miss his second match in a row with an injury to his bowling arm, especially as this game will have no bearing on what happens in the Super Eights. Kyle Mills is bowling again following a back strain picked up during his non-playing stint in the IPL and could be available.

South Africa will be torn slightly between giving their fringe squad members, such as Robin Peterson and Justin Ontong, a game or continuing with their first-choice line-up. It was hard to fault any of their players in the demolition of Scotland.

Pitch and conditions
This is the tournament's return to Lord's following England's defeat to the Netherlands on the opening day. On that occasion run-scoring wasn't easy in the greasy conditions, which could be repeated with rain predicted on Tuesday.

Stats and Trivia

  • Jacob Oram's career strike-rate of 155.95 is the highest for New Zealand and places him 12th on the game's all-time list. Albie Morkel leads South Africa with a mark of 143.92 sitting him in 24th
  • South Africa's 211 for 5 against Scotland was the fifth-highest total in Twenty20 internationals
  • In the three matches between the teams, South Africa won twice in 2007 and lost in 2005

Match fact:
Tuesday June, 09, 2009 (day/night)
Start time: 17:30 local, 16:30 GMT


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