LONDON: They like it or not, New Zealand are always the underdogs. In the 2015 final they ran into Australia at MCG as pushovers and got pushed out of the contest almost as soon as it began. They run into a home team in a World Cup final again, with no change to their status.
And whether he likes it or not, Kane Williamson keeps getting reminded of it before every match. It was the same before the semifinal against India. It was no different before the final against England. But then, the New Zealand skipper found a novel of way answering it.
“A lot of people say that which is great and England deserve to be favourites. Coming into this tournament, they were the favourites and they've been playing really good cricket.
"But whatever dog we are, it's important that we focus on the cricket we want to play and we’ve seen over the years that anybody can beat anybody regardless of the breed of the dog,” his reply caused a roar of laughter, breaking the normally sombre air of pre-match media conferences.
Jokes apart, there was truth in what Williamson said. Unheralded and unnoticed, they quietly made their way to the last four before causing the loudest bang of the tournament.
In his own silent way, Williamson has moved up to fifth on the batting charts for the tournament, averaging 91.11. Two of his bowlers --- Lockie Ferguson and Trent Boult --- are in the top 10 of the wicket-takers list.
But there are areas of concern as well. Their top order has not fired at all and most of the runs have come from Williamson and Ross Taylor. They are also the only team other than Afghanistan to have not topped 300 even once in the tournament.
“It’s a challenge. But the reality of it is that there have been tough surfaces. Trying to make those adjustments according to the surfaces are important,” said Williamson.
On the other hand, they have the attack to make good sides look ordinary. Boult and Ferguson are spoken about more often, while they have others capable of doing equal damage. Against India for example, Matt Henry made the early inroads before Mitchell Santner put the brakes on. It’s this unit that New Zealand will bank on again.
This is also a side that doesn’t seem to be carrying and baggage or memories of four years ago, when their world exploded on the big day. Under Williamson, their cricket is less attractive than Brendon McCullum’s bunch of 2015. Yet going by results, they are more consistent and here they are at the same stage, determined to go a step ahead.
“Anything is possible. We have a different group, different vibes and ethos. And we’ve got used to playing at grounds where the other team has greater support, with a few Kiwis scattered in amongst the majority of opposition crowds,” said Williamson.
Underdogs alright, puppies no more! They have a perfect stage to show they can bite.