KEY POINTS:
The last time Brendon McCullum and Jesse Ryder opened an ODI in Christchurch, they put England's bowlers through a cricketing blender.
It was the final act in a remarkable double feature which had run a fortnight over that five-game series last summer, during which the pair, put together at the top of the order for the first time, turned in a series of exhilarating exhibitions to help push New Zealand to a 3-1 win in the rubber.
With both players given full rein to show their attacking gifts, it became a dodge-fest for crowds as the ball sailed into the stands.
Ryder hit 196 runs off 215 balls, McCullum led the destructive swathe against the English attack with 261 runs in just 203 balls.
At Hamilton, they added an unbroken 165 in only 18.1 overs to set up a 10-wicket win; at Christchurch it was 103 off a mere 11.2 overs.
They warmed up for the ODI series by flaying 130 in 11.4 overs off the West Indies in the second Twenty20 international at Hamilton last Sunday, but the rained-out opening ODI against the West Indies in Queenstown on Wednesday delayed the first opportunity for the pair to resume business in the 50-over format until today.
"We don't tend to complicate it too much," McCullum said of their opening philosophy.
"We do tend to feed off each other. If one is going it almost gives the other confidence to attack as well. When we both get away to a decent start we can be quite destructive."
McCullum knows high risk can mean terrific reward, or a blowout, but that's an acceptable risk given both he and Ryder are exceptionally gifted attacking shotmakers.
And if it does come off, with bowlers knocked off their stride, it can lay ideal groundwork for those who follow.
"If we can do what we did last year, and consistently well, then allow our strokemakers and boundary hitters down the order to express themselves later on in the game," McCullum added.
Since beating Pakistan in February 2001, New Zealand have won 11 of their 14 ODI series at home, losing only to Australia twice, and drawing a rubber with Sri Lanka.
They are confident and believe they are a better allround unit than the West Indies, but must reset their objectives after the Queenstown washout. Three wins out of four are needed to maintain that record.
As for the West Indies, they hope their most experienced batsman, Shivnarine Chanderpaul is fit, after bruising the webbing between the thumb and index finger of his left hand. The injury is wear and tear, rather than a result of taking a blow on it.
He did not bat in the nets yesterday, being confined to feeding the bowling machine, so the signs are not encouraging.
"He's on his back and we feed him grapes," the West Indies Australian coach John Dyson said cryptically yesterday.
If Chanderpaul is absent, the heat will go on the younger players to step up, a step which has regularly proved beyond them in the last couple of rebuilding years. Equally, captain Chris Gayle and the other senior batsman, Ramnaresh Sarwan, will feel more weight of responsibility.
There is more grim financial news for the West Indies, with Carib Beer ending its sponsorship of the Caribbean first-class competition after six years.
That follows the decision by KFC not to renew its domestic one-day contract last year, and at least a reduction in sponsorship from Texan billionaire Allen Stanford after he lost about US$40 million ($70 million) with his Twenty20 tournament in Antigua.
A West Indies board release said that "the unpredictable nature of the 2009 economy" had led Carib Beer to its decision to pull out. The cost to the board to run the competition unsponsored is likely to top US$1 million.
* New Zealand vs West Indies
Christchurch, 2pm today
New Zealand: Dan Vettori (c), Brendon McCullum, Jesse Ryder, Jamie How, Ross Taylor, Daniel Flynn, Jacob Oram, Neil Broom, Grant Elliott, Kyle Mills, Tim Southee, Jeetan Patel, Mark Gillespie (one to be omitted).
West Indies: Chris Gayle (c), Sewnarine Chattergoon, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Xavier Marshall, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Brendon Nash, Kieron Pollard, Shawn Findlay, Denesh Ramdin, Carlton Baugh, Jerome Taylor, Fidel Edwards, Nikita Miller, Daren Powell, Lionel Baker (four to be omitted).
