New Zealand Look to Book Quarters Berth

Mumbai: Buoyant New Zealand are seeking to wrap up qualification for the World Cup quarterfinals against Canada on Sunday after their stunning power show against Pakistan.

The Black Caps have a total of six points after thumping 10-wicket wins over Kenya and Zimbabwe, and their 110-run victory against Pakistan on Tuesday.

Their only blemish was a seven-wicket defeat against Australia but another slip-up to minnows Canada in Mumbai would be a major shock.

Stand-in skipper Ross Taylor was the star performer in Pallekele smashing 131 in 124 balls with a whopping seven sixes after getting two early let-offs.

New Zealand hit an astonishing 100 runs from their final five overs with Nathan McCullum and Jacob Oram also joining in the batting blitz.

Taylor is set to lead the side again against Canada in the absence of injured skipper Daniel Vettori.

Vettori left the field during the Pakistan game after injuring his right knee while attempting to take a catch and had to leave the field for the remainder of the game.

A scan showed he had a mild strain of his post cruciate ligament and he is targeting the final group match against Sri Lanka on March 18 for a return.

Canada have no realistic chance of qualifying for the last eight but come into the match after registering their first win of the tournament against Group A whipping boys Kenya.

Canada captain Ashish Bagai said the victory over Kenya would spur his team to perform well in their remaining group matches.

Aside from that win, the side has had a tough tournament with three losses, crashing to overwhelming defeats to Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe before putting up more of a fight against Pakistan.

The North American side restricted Kenya to a total of 198 in New Delhi on Monday, winning by five wickets with the skipper leading the way with an unbeaten 64.

"We are looking to use this as a spark for the second half of the first round. My goal now is to get the batsmen who are performing to be consistent and leave the first round on a high," said Bagai.

The victory was only Canada's second ever in a World Cup after a 60-run triumph against Bangladesh in the 2003 edition.

Teams from

New Zealand: Ross Taylor (capt), Hamish Bennett, James Franklin, Martin Guptill, Jamie How, Brendon McCullum (wk), Nathan McCullum, Kyle Mills, Jacob Oram, Jesse Ryder, Tim Southee, Scott Styris, Kane Williamson, Luke Woodcock.

Canada: Ashish Bagai (capt & wk), Rizwan Cheema, Harvir Baidwan, Nitish Kumar, Hiral Patel, Tyson Gordon, Henry Osinde, John Davison, Ruvindu Gunasekera, Parth Desai, Karl Whatham, Khurram Chohan, Jimmy Hansra, Zubin Surkari, Balaji Rao.

Pitch and conditions
The match is the first of the World Cup at the Wankhede Stadium, which hosts the final on April 2. It is a flat wicket that has been unused for the past two years due to renovation of the stadium but usually favours batsmen.

Stats and trivia

• The two teams have previously met twice in World Cups, in 2003 when New Zealand won by five wickets and again in 2007 when they claimed a 114-run victory.
• However, in both matches John Davison has made his mark with 75 off 62 balls in Benoni and 52 off 31 in Gros Islet.

Match facts
Sunday March 13, 2011
Start time 9:30 local (04:00 GMT)