Underdogs NZ ready to bare their claws

The deputies of divided units that have imminent power struggle and palace intrigue also utter these lines but they are off-the-record whispers that are actually leaks to undermine the captain and to hasten their own elevation.

That is unlike Vettori, who does go on to speak about the respect 8216;Flem8217; enjoys in the team and how the team wants him to stick around for long, they can8217;t dare to openly joke about the so important and fragile relationship, vital for team spirit.

It8217;s this pleasant positive energy laced with the typically laid-back NZ humour that conveys the quiet confidence of the players as they landed in Kingston with a dream of travelling to Barbados for the April 28 final. Though Vettori confesses that it8217;s a cliche, and something that is repeated by virtually all the teams around, he insists that his team isn8217;t overburdened by the importance of the crucial clash ahead and 8220;enjoying the once in a lifetime opportunity8221;. That is their way of dealing with the pressure.

Ask him if doing the 8216;haka8217; wouldn8217;t be a better idea to aggressively posture themselves for the final phase of the World Cup and the eyebrows pop out of his glasses and another smile escapes from the corner of his lips. 8220;Skinny white men with glasses don8217;t do that,8221; he says. So is this allergy to aggression a conscious decision or part of a calculated strategy to underplay them? Vettori just repeats himself. 8220;All I said was the fact that skinny white men don8217;t do the haka,8221; and he is laughing again.

Reminding him of the humiliation of the last World Cup semi-final that New Zealand played 8212; 8217;99 in England against Pakistan 8212; also doesn8217;t make Vettori sombre or serious. The nine- wicket humiliation is still fresh in his mind, but when one inquires about the moral of that overwhelming loss, he smiles again. 8220;I do remember that two Pakistan openers put on about 200 runs. So I have learnt that one has to take wickets to win.8221; That8217;s certainly not some profound enlightenment, but once again a way of weeding out uncomfortable memories.

Maybe, it8217;s this light-hearted tone and that perennial New Zealand underdog tag that gives their rivals a sense of complacency and that8217;s what the Fleming and his men want to exploit.

Vettori explains this mental approach. 8220;As a team we are confident and focused, but as a country we always see ourselves as underdogs. Except for our rugby side, that is very aggressive, the rest of the sporting teams in our country are seen as underdogs,8221; he says.

So is it because of an isolation of distant island? Vettori doesn8217;t agree as he says it is more to do with the isolation on the cricketing map rather than the geographical reasons. 8220;The main reason we don8217;t have big stars is that we don8217;t play many games. Though, there is a huge amount or respect. We aren8217;t seen as punching bags but enjoy a good respect from our rivals. But we do have stars like Shane Bond in the team,8221; he says.

That8217;s a total contrast with their neighbours from Down Under Australia, a team with mega stars and overtly in-the-face attitude. Bond speaks about the Aussie aggro in a way God would speak about atheists.

8220;The Aussies always speak about how well they are playing. And most of the time they speak through the media,8221; he says when he is asked about Ricky Ponting8217;s comments that the Black Caps wouldn8217;t be able to shake off the trauma of the big loss they suffered just before the final. But from the look of it the New Zealanders in their typically light-hearted way are managing just as well.

Besides, they actually aren8217;t as laid-back as they want themselves to appear. As the two teams landed in Kingston on the same flight there was just one who stopped his car at Sabina Park on the way to the hotel.

New Zealand coach John Bracewell, with his luggage still in the car boot, walked straight to the pitch, inspected it and with a smile on the face, left to convey his verdict to his team.

Reaching the World Cup semi-final for a country of just 4 million isn8217;t just a joke.