Form XI
In batting order
Shikhar Dhawan (Ind)
Brendon McCullum (NZ, captain)
Kumar Sangakkara (SL, keeper)
Virat Kohli (Ind)
AB de Villiers (SA)
Shaiman Anwar (UAE)
Corey Anderson (NZ)
Mitchell Starc (AUS)
Daniel Vettori (NZ)
Trent Boult (NZ)
Tim Southee (NZ)
Top four individual performances
• AB de Villiers bludgeoned the West Indies for an undefeated 162 from just 66 balls. His 100 came off 52 balls. The next 50 took 12 deliveries. Just extraordinary.
• Tim Southee ran through the hapless England line-up with seven for 33 in a masterful display of swing bowling.
• Mitchell Starc's six for 28 against New Zealand was an exhibition in how to bowl at the tail. Full, fast and on target.
• A double ton is quite the achievement no matter the strength of the bowling attack, so we are obligated to mention Chris Gayle's 215 against Zimbabwe.
Best game
• Very hard to go past New Zealand's heart-stopping one-wicket win against Australia or Ireland's brilliant run chase to upset the West Indies. But Afghanistan's marvellous win over fellow associate nation Scotland in Dunedin gets the nod because of Shapoor Zadran's magnificent celebration. Elation carried him on a 50m sprint before he collapsed on the ground.
Overrated
• England. England. And England. Three heavy defeats and one win over Scotland.
• Whisper it but South Africa's bowling attack has not been as impressive as feared. Dale Steyn has taken just three wickets at an average of 47.66.
• West Indies captain and former Otago Volts import Jason Holder's 10 overs against South Africa cost his side 104 runs. At least he took a wicket.
Underrated
• Ireland. Ireland. And Ireland. Chased a target of 305 to beat the West Indies by four wickets in the opening week.
• Afghanistan's bowling unit has been mightily impressive and the campaign to get fast bowler Hamid Hassan to Dunedin next summer to play for Otago is already under way.
• Opener Lahiru Thirimanne is benefiting from a long stint in New Zealand. His strong form has boosted an already talent-laden Sri Lankan top order.
Crystal ball
Possible quarterfinal match-ups
• It appears as if New Zealand will top pool A, which means it will play the fourth-placed side in Pool B in Wellington. It is a dog fight for that last spot but we are predicting Pakistan will come through despite a slow start to the tournament. But it could just as easily be Ireland or the West Indies.
• The outcome of the Australia-Sri Lanka game on March 8 will likely decide who finishes second in pool A. The winner will avoid a likely quarterfinal against South Africa and get one of the above teams instead.
• India has been the form team in pool B and should finish on top of the standings. England should be good enough to bounce back from heavy defeats to New Zealand, Australia and Sri Lanka to earn a quarterfinal against the defending champion.
• So, potential quarterfinals are as follows: New Zealand v Pakistan, Australia v West Indies, India v England and South Africa v Sri Lanka.
Questions for the Black Caps
• Is spinner Daniel Vettori New Zealand's trump card or is it Brendon McCullum's aggressive captaincy and even more aggressive batting?
• How does Corey Anderson continue to burgle wickets? Is he getting the kind of luck Sir Ian Botham got at the end of his career?
• Will Mitchell McClenaghan, Kyle Mills, Nathan McCullum and Tom Latham ever get a run?
• Who has a higher ODI average - Tim Southee or Ewen Chatfield?
• It's not Southee. When will he drop to No 11 and stay there?
• Should New Zealand elect to bat first against Afghanistan and Bangladesh to give the likes of Martin Guptill and Ross Taylor some time in the middle?
