Daijiworld Media Network

Basseterre, St Kitts, Jul 14: Hello and welcome to the 4th ODI between West Indies and New Zealand. The Kiwis won the last match comprehensively and they will be upbeat as they take on a much improved WI outfit. Taylor and Brendon McCullum is expected to play today's match and that will bolster the Kiwi line-up.

West Indies have won the toss and elected to bat

Sammy: We will bat first. The wicket looks a lot drier than the previous match and the spinners will get some purchase later on. Ramdin is getting married and he misses out today and Rampaul is not playing. Best comes in his place

Taylor: I am fit enough to play today. Williamson led the team well in my absence and we have made three changes to the team and we hope to put up a better performance today. We need to play well and need to remove Gayle early.

Teams:

West Indies (Playing XI): Johnson Charles, Chris Gayle, Dwayne Smith, Marlon Samuels, Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard, Andre Russell, Darren Sammy(c), Devon Thomas(w), Sunil Narine, Tino Best

New Zealand (Playing XI): Rob Nicol, Martin Guptill, Brendon McCullum, Ross Taylor(c), Kane Williamson, Tom Latham(w), Nathan McCullum, Jacob Oram, Tim Southee, Doug Bracewell, Trent Boult

Match Preview :

It was meant to be a day to remember. West Indies were to pay tribute to the deceased Runako Morton by winning against the demoralized New Zealand and seal the series. The visitors had other ideas though and turned the record book upside down to keep the series alive.

New Zealand kept the series alive with an emphatic victory over the hosts in the 3rd ODI at St. Kitts. After looking out of depth in the T20 series and the first two ODIs, the Kiwis suddenly sprung back to life with an all-round performance at Warner Park. Despite managing only 249, an under par score at this ground, the Kiwis came back superbly with the ball to inflict a humiliating 89 run loss for the hosts. They will welcome Brendon McCullum back into the side. Initially rested following a hectic summer, injury troubles forced the team management to call McCullum back into the scheme of things. If that was encouraging, the news that Ross Taylor is almost fit and might even play Saturday's match would have been music to the ears of the management.

The bowling has found its rhythm after a tough time against Gayle and co in the beginning of the tour. They were aided by some rash shots from the batsmen, but credit must be given to the bowlers for outfoxing the batsmen

The West Indies juggernaut came to a rude halt at St. Kitts. Chris Gayle, the star performer fell cheaply and the rest of the batting line-up failed to stand up and be counted. The West Indies batting line-up is filled with batsmen of flair and natural attacking ability. On a flat track and short boundaries, the batsmen played one shots too may and contributed to their own downfall. They would look to correct their errors as they seek their 1st ODI series win under captain Darren Sammy.