Cricket World Cup: Black Caps v Australia - top five innings

Black Cap Craig McMillan celebrates his century off 68 balls against Australia. Photo / NZPA

The Black Caps' batting lineup is in fine fettle at the moment, but they'll know that beating Australia usually requires something special.

Ahead of Saturday's Cricket World Cup clash between the two sides, we look back on some of the best innings played by New Zealand batsmen against Australia.

1. Chris Harris, March 1996, 130 off 124 balls
This was back when New Zealand were still wearing a watery-grey ODI uniform and Paul Reiffel was a cricketer, not an umpire. In the quarterfinal of the '96 World Cup, New Zealand batted first in Chennai and scored an impressive 286 off their 50 overs. Harris led the way with a brilliant 130, hitting 13 fours and four sixes. The only problem was the performance came in a losing effort. The Aussies were too good in the end, picking off the runs with six wickets and two overs to spare.

2. Craig McMillan, February 2007, 117 off 96 balls
This innings came in the pioneering days of the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy. Both sides were hungry for runs and the small boundaries at Hamilton's Seddon Park duly obliged. The Australians batted first and posted 346-5 off their 50. Ordinarily a run-rate of 6.92 would be good enough to do the job, but nobody told McMillan. Coming out to bat at No 6, with his side barely going at four an over, McMillan plundered the Australian attack, racing to a 117-run innings that included 13 fours and five sixes. McMillan's knock is arguably more memorable than Harris' because it led his team to victory.

3. Ross Taylor, February 2007, 117 off 127 balls
Taylor's century came in the same series as McMillan's effort above. The three-zip series result was one of the Black Caps' greatest achievements over the old enemy, and the success was due to some brilliant batting performances. In this match New Zealand were again faced with the daunting challenge of chasing a 300-plus score. Just as McMillan used Seddon Park's small boundaries to his advantage, so too did Taylor with the Eden Park dimensions. Taylor drove the Black Caps to victory, but Peter Fulton deserves a notable mention, his 76 off 65 helping enormously in the cause. That man McMillan had another brilliant day, belting 52 off 30.

4. Stephen Fleming, January 1998, 116 off 122 balls
In a long and distinguished career, this was one of Fleming's finest moments. Australia batted first, scoring 251 off 50 overs. Fleming came to the crease with New Zealand going nowhere at 26-2 after eight overs. The erstwhile Black Caps skipper was one of the most attractive batsmen to watch on his day, and this was very much his day (or night, to be exact). He stoked and drove and pulled and cut New Zealand to victory almost single-handedly, the only other contribution of note being Adam Parore's 46 off 77 balls. A masterclass.

5. Lance Cairns, February 1983, 52 off 25 balls
It might seem strange to include a half-century in this list when there are several hundreds we could pick from, but Cairns' innings has become one of the iconic moments of New Zealand cricket history. Australia won the game by 149 runs, but the match still sticks out for the six sixes Cairns smashed in quick succession with his shoulder-less Excalibur bat, including a one-handed effort over square leg off Dennis Lillee.

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