NZ XI vs. West Indies, Tour Match: Date, Time, Live Stream, TV Info and Preview

The West Indies begin their tour of New Zealand with a three day warm-up match against a New Zealand XI in Lincoln, just outside Christchurch.

Venue: Bert Sutcliffe Oval, Lincoln

Commences: Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2013

Start time: 9:30 p.m. GMT (10:30 a.m. local)

Live on: Not Available

Weather: Met Service predicts periods of rain for Wednesday and Thursday before sunny spells and a top of 24 degrees Celsius on Friday.

Overview:

It sounds odd to suggest that the Board of Control for Cricket in India has played a large say in the West Indies' impending tour of New Zealand, but that's exactly what has happened.

With the BCCI desperate to hold a national farewell party for Sachin Tendulkar, it invited the lowly West Indies to the subcontinent to act as nothing more than a valedictory podium for the departing batsman. 

Cricket's most influential body used its weight to lure the West Indies, at the same time as it bullied Cricket South Africa to shorten its fixture list for India's original tour there in November and December.

Consequently, fixture clashes have been created, with the Caribbean side's final ODI in India overlapping with the early dates of the team's New Zealand tour.

With the West Indies desperate to salvage something from their alarmingly poor showing against India, it's unclear what sort of team the New Zealand XI will face in Lincoln, given that a number of key West Indian players are set to compete in the ODI in Kanpur on the same day as this warm-up match. 

Squads:

New Zealand XI: Brendon McCullum (c), James Baker, Mark Craig, Tom Latham (wk), Hamish Rutherford, Anurag Verma, Todd Astle, Dean Brownlie, Peter Fulton, Andrew Mathieson, Derek de Boorder

West Indies: Darren Sammy (c), Tino Best, Darren Bravo, Sheldon Cottrell, Kirk Edwards, Veerasammy Permaul, Marlon Samuels, Chadwick Walton (wk), Denesh Ramdin, Kraigg Brathwaite, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Narsingh Deonarine, Shannon Gabriel, Kieran Powell, Shane Shillingford

Men Who Need Runs:

New Zealand XI: New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum desperately needs to find some form in the game's longer formats after a disappointing tour of Bangladesh. The hard-hitting batsman left the tour early with a lingering back injury, which also forced him to miss his team's limited overs fixtures in Sri Lanka.

Without a Test hundred in more than three years, McCullum needs to show that there's more to his game than extravagant flurries in the limited overs arena. A big score in this warm-up match would set him up nicely for a successful summer at home.

West Indies: With Chris Gayle missing due to a hamstring injury picked up in India, the West Indies will need their veteran batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul to fire. The unconventional left-hander made four reasonable starts in the two Tests in India, but failed to convert any of them into a big score.

The 39-year-old has not played in his team's ODI encounters with India, meaning he should be focussed on scoring runs in the game's longer formats. An early hundred in New Zealand conditions would do wonders for his side's confidence.

Men Who Need Wickets:

New Zealand XI: Todd Astle has enjoyed a steady rise since relinquishing his opening batting duties to focus on his promising leg-spin. Now, with 155 first-class wickets, Astle is in the minds of New Zealand's selectors, who picked the all-rounder when he debuted against Sri Lanka in 2012.

With Daniel Vettori unavailable for the series against the West Indies, an impressive performance could have Astle pushing for selection. While the move would represent a leap of faith—given that he's only played one international match—the prospect of an improving leg-spinner may be a tempting one for New Zealand.

West Indies: Tino Best is a man in need of wickets, following a poor series with the ball against India. The 5'8" right-arm quick bowler recorded series figures of 2-164 on the subcontinent, going at close to five runs an over during the home side's batting barrage in both Tests. 

Not part of the West Indies ODI fixtures in India, Best would be well served by a good performance in his team's opening match in New Zealand. If the bustling speedster can return to his energetic and aggressive ways, he should find more success on the greener wickets found on Kiwi shores.