Cricket: Convincing victory huge confidence booster - Oram

Jacob Oram says the team know they have to stay focused and make every game count. Picture / AP

You don't need to have played as many games as Jacob Oram to know a team shouldn't get carried away with one win, especially when you need two more to win a series, but the allrounder says the 88-run victory over the West Indies has provided a much needed boost.

New Zealand kept the ODI series alive with their impressive performance in St Kitts on Thursday and have a chance to push for a decider when the teams clash in the fourth ODI tomorrow.

The 158-game veteran says there is still plenty of work to do but the manner of the side's win was perfect for their confidence.

"Not only did we win but we won convincingly which has actually helped individuals in their approach to the next game.

"We're well aware that it's two games left and we're still 1-2 down so we're trying to not get too far off the ground because if we don't win the fourth game then the fifth one doesn't really matter."

New Zealand head into the next match with momentum and a change of fortune on the injury front.

Doug Bracewell and Andrew Ellis are available following injury breaks, while Brendon McCullum is set for his first taste of the Caribbean this tour after arriving earlier in the week.

However the doors of the physio's room continue to swing with BJ Watling expected to miss the rest of the series as he awaits tests on a strained thigh. He is in doubt for the two tests.

The obvious difference between Thursday's game and the previous four matches of the tour was the early dismissal of West Indies opener Chris Gayle, who has been a main focus from the outset.

Oram says Gayle taught New Zealand a lesson over the first two weeks of the tour, but Tim Southee turned the tide when he had him caught behind for a tame 11 from 22 balls as the West Indies chased 250 to win.

"No way do we feel like we're on top of Chris Gayle," he said.

"He's still probably averaging 80, or something like that, for the tour so we know he's going to be a massive thorn in our sides."

Oram said New Zealand, despite a couple of spilled catches, had fielded as well as he'd ever seen.

Meanwhile, fast bowler Tim Southee has been added to the New Zealand squad for the upcoming two-test series against the West Indies.