Why NZ Cricket is a Winner Already

Never in New Zealand's history has cricket been so loved by the public and media.

Even the fabled 1992 side and Richard Hadlee's merry men of the 1980s didn't get this much attention - then again, news and social media and Apple weren't as powerful as they are nowadays.

The Hurricanes' 6-0 start and the Warriors 20th anniversary celebrations have grabbed the attention of sports media but even then, they are a mere dent on the juggernaut that is Brendon McCullum and Mike Hesson's Blackcaps of 2015.

The real essence of the story is the turnaround of a team that was at its nadir at the start of the 2010s, after a fairly fallow decade of inconsistent results and forgettable bit players, into a consistently victorious and highly competitive team.

For so long, New Zealand cricket for all its talent, has had the odd great result against a big name - mostly at home - yet never gone on to show that it can consistently deliver the wins and become a force in the game.

Hence, it's why this World Cup has been so wonderful and more than thumps the performance of Martin Crowe's 1992 side which fell short at the semifinals to Pakistan.

The gritty win over South Africa signalled the arrival of the New Zealand cricket side that the public has always dreamt of seeing - on record, it caped off an unbeaten campaign at home for the Blackcaps in this World Cup but it also showed that New Zealand's cricketers finally had the same grit and strength that were hallmarks of that other team that New Zealand loves.

Whatever happens in Melbourne on Sunday night, New Zealand cricket is a winner already.

Without wanting to be a lone dark cloud in a sunny blue sky, winning the World Cup on the turf of the ultimate enemy who happen to be the hosts will be difficult and there will also be elements on the day that could conspire to deny the Blackcaps the World Cup, i.e. refereeing decisions, weather, luck.

The 1995 All Blacks were denied the world title by ill health and a nation hellbent on showing the world what they've missed for so long due to apartheid. But their defeat in the Final did nothing to harm their status as one of our greatest All Blacks sides.

I think the 2015 Blackcaps, win or lose, will be considered one of our greatest cricket teams - possibly even our greatest; of course that status would be secured by World Cup glory. Defeat will be heartbreaking but should not stop the impending revival of the game in NZ in the grassroots.

Right from the start, that is probably the result the NZ Cricket fraternity would have wanted.