Confidence is running high in the West Indies camp, coming off that T20 series sweep over Bangladesh.
And skipper Shai Hope says the mood in the camp is upbeat, with the players feeling ready and confident ahead of their five-match T20 showdown against New Zealand.
The Caribbean men bowl off the series on Wednesday 5th November, using the tour as a key tune-up ahead of the upcoming World Cup.
00:00It's a quick turnaround for the Caribbean men, making the long journey from Dhaka to Auckland with only four days between series.
00:07The West Indies will face the Black Caps in back-to-back matches over the next two days.
00:12But with the confidence gained from their recent series sweeper, Bangladesh, Captain Shea Hope wants to see them build on the momentum.
00:18Playing against one of the better teams in the world, as a player you want to challenge yourself, certainly in their home conditions.
00:24And, you know, coming off that 3-0 victory that we had in Bangladesh is a great confidence booster for us as a team.
00:30So just to keep challenging ourselves and testing ourselves and see where we are as a team, building into that World Cup.
00:36So initially it's a T20 series, but obviously it's a long tour, so it's about trying to gain that momentum.
00:41Hopefully we can get as much success as possible on this trip.
00:44And moving from the slower and more spin-friendly tracks of Bangladesh to the faster ones in New Zealand will require a quick adjustment, but one hope welcomes.
00:53You have to take a lot, especially going into conditions that you may not have faced ever in your career.
01:00And getting the success that we've had says a lot about the unit, the strength of the unit.
01:05And I think, like I said, it's a great confidence booster going into this series.
01:09Slightly different conditions, maybe totally different conditions.
01:12But as we all know, it's one of the biggest things of being a professional cricketer.
01:17You've got to be able to adapt to each condition you're going to.
01:20So, plays, I'm sure the batters, even the bowlers will be a lot happier to be playing on these surfaces.
01:27But yes, confidence booster from Bangladesh.
01:29Hopefully we can turn things around in New Zealand and get a lot more success here.
01:34On the back of their recent series sweep, Hope was cautious to categorize whether West Indian cricket is on the up or not.
01:40I think there's always, you know, like anything else, there's ups and downs.
01:45And the way how our cricket goes, we've got to take the positive with us, regardless of what situation we think or feel we're in.
01:52But I wouldn't say that we're in a hole or in a hut.
01:56It's just being able to change things around quicker, especially on a tour in foreign conditions.
02:03But I think the way how the guys are playing, the way how we're in general as a team, certainly a lot to discuss.
02:09And I can certainly feel the progression in the teams.
02:13Despite being over 8,000 miles away from home, the destruction in Jamaica is close in the thoughts of the West Indian players.
02:20Certainly very sad sights to see.
02:22It's not something that we ever want to wish on anyone.
02:26A few of the guys, well, all of us, we do have connections with so many players who have been affected, whether it's them personally or their families.
02:35And we certainly feel it from a long distance.
02:39And just really hope that things can turn around quickly and all the support that you can give.
02:44I really hope that we all can share that same support and help all that country.
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