Best team not to win the cup - New Zealand, 1992

Be it Mark Greatbatch playing the role of a pinch-hitter, offie Dipak Patel opening the bowling, medium pacers coming to the fore or the skipper himself showcasing tremendous form, everything worked for co-hosts New Zealand in the 1992 World Cup and they seemed destined to become the first home team to lift the trophy. Having won seven games on the trot, the Black Caps were in red-hot form, until they were up against a mercurial Pakistan side.Three of New Zealand's batsmen finished in the top-ten list of run-getters in the '92 World Cup while two Black Caps bowlers made it to the top-ten list of wicket-takers, evidence that they were the most dominant side in the fifth edition of the world event. However, none of that could change the fact that the hosts were taken by surprise, one that will haunt them over and over until they finally lay their hands on a trophy.A glorious run:With 456 runs at a terrific average of 114.00, Martin Crowe led from the front and played starring roles in most of New Zealand's wins in the Benson & Hedges World Cup. Greatbatch's attacking batting up-front (313 runs at a strike-rate of 87.92) provided New Zealand fine platforms while Andrew Jones (322 runs at an average of 46.00) and Ken Rutherford's (212 runs at an average of 42.40) contributions were also crucial to New Zealand's success. While the batters did a good job, Black Caps also needed the bowlers to come to the party, which they did. Chris Harris (16 wickets) led the way, while the likes of Willie Watson (12 wickets), Gavin Larsen (9 wickets) and Danny Morrison combined well to tie down the opposition batsmen, who also found it difficult to come to terms with an off-spinner bowling with the new ball. In fact, none of the front-line bowlers conceded more than five an over, which proved crucial in New Zealand's unbeaten run for their first seven matches.Despite David Boon's hundred in their opening game, New Zealand had no problems overcoming Australia, while none of Sri Lanka, South Africa, Zimbabwe, West Indies, India or England had any answers to the home team on a rampage. When it went downhill:The batsmen were largely untroubled against some of the best like Allan Donald, Craig McDermott, Malcom Marshall, Curtly Ambrose, Kapil Dev and Ian Botham. However, Wasim Akram's ability to move the ball prodigiously and Mushtaq Ahmed's variations started the downfall of the hosts. When they were bowled out for 166 in their final league game against Pakistan and slipped to their first loss of the tournament, many thought New Zealand's failure was an aberration. Crowe (91) and Rutherford (57) ensured that New Zealand reached a commanding 262/7 in the semi-final against the same opposition they faced in their final league match. However, an experienced campaigner (Javed Miandad 57* off 69) doing what he does best and a rookie (Inzamam-ul-Haq 60 off 37) playing like it was the end of the world, meant that New Zealand's summer of glory came to an abrupt halt. Pakistan won the first semi-final by 4 wickets with an over to spare and Imran Khan's "Cornered Tigers" went on to make history.In retrospect, New Zealand's agony could have been avoided if skipper Crowe had been on duty - he did not take the field in the second innings, tending to his hamstring injury and leaving the leadership duties to John Wright - or if Wright had not used the pair of Larsen and Harris in an extended spell. However, 'Wright got it Wrong' and New Zealand failed to go the full distance.