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New Zealand's World Cup journey has been plagued by injuries, leading to their third consecutive defeat in the ODI World Cup. Despite these setbacks, allrounder Glenn Phillips remains optimistic, emphasising that they are just two wins away from securing a spot in the semifinals.
The Kiwi team, currently holding eight points, faced a significant setback with a crushing 190-run loss against South Africa in their recent match on November 1 (Wednesday). However, the tournament is far from over, and there's still a chance for New Zealand to turn the tide in their favour.
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"It's just two wins away, and that hopefully puts us in third or fourth place, potentially even second," Phillips, who scored a 50-ball 60, said during the post-match press conference.
"So, I think if we can just keep sticking to our basics, what we do best on the field, everything will be alright," he added.
The Black Caps will play against Pakistan on November 4 and Sri Lanka on November 9 in their upcoming two matches.
Pakistan's chances of reaching the semifinals improved slightly after they secured a seven-wicket victory over Bangladesh recently.
"We try to remain level-headed throughout everything, not ride the highs too high and the lows too low. So, I think for us, it's to go about our business as we've done the whole way through, just keeping things simple, sticking to what we do best”, said Phillips.
"Obviously, the way England, Australia, South Africa, they all play a very aggressive brand of cricket and we've got our own brand and if we stick to it, we know that we're fighters, we keep coming back time and time again and when it matters most, we really put the foot down," he added.
New Zealand's choice to bowl first didn't go as planned, with Quinton de Kock scoring 114 and Rassie van der Dussen scoring 133, leading South Africa to a total of 357/4.
In response, New Zealand was bowled out for 167 in 35.3 overs.
"South Africa are incredibly strong batting first but we've got an incredibly good bowling lineup and there was no reason that we couldn't have restricted them to a total that could have been a lot easier to chase there," he added.
"Playing on at the end, I definitely thought it got better as well. So, I think had things gone slightly differently, we could definitely have come a lot closer than we did today." Phillips also expressed regret over the missed opportunities.
"I mean at the end of the day a couple of tough chances were dropped, a missed run out when his back was turned to the bowler's end. You have no idea where Quinton's actually standing," he further added.
"Obviously, he had a little bit more time than he thought, but at the end of the day, it's not like we've been dropping straightforward chances or creating a lot of blunders in the field.
"We've definitely put a lot of pressure on the opposition in the field and we've saved a lot of runs and obviously sometimes people drop catches and that's just the way things go”, he continued.
New Zealand is facing a challenging situation with a string of injuries, which is putting them in a difficult position as the World Cup reaches the crucial stage. Five players, including their regular captain Kane Williamson (thumb), are dealing with injuries.
In addition to Ferguson and Mark Chapman, who were already recovering from injuries, Matt Henry and James Neesham also sustained injuries on November 1, with the former experiencing a hamstring issue.
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