A REVERSION to the old, annoying carelessness they had seemingly expunged cost the West Indies a guaranteed place in the World Cup's Super Six round yesterday and presented New Zealand with a lifeline to remain in the tournament.
The West Indies were beaten by 20 runs by opponents whose spirit, intensity and athleticism they were unable to match or contain.
The fervour of New Zealand's effort was personified by an ebullient all-rounder who, but for his parents' wanderlust, might have been on the West Indies side.
Andre Adams, born in Auckland of a Vincentian father and Guyanese mother 27 years ago, thumped two sixes in an unbeaten 35 off 24 balls in a final flourish that brought New Zealand 53 decisive runs off 43 balls in partnership with wicket-keeper Brendon McCallum.
It pushed their 50 overs total to 241 for seven after Carl Hooper sent them in and was always going to be enough once the West Indies lost five wickets for 12 from 30 balls in half-hour of rank slackness that left them 46 for five.
His batting mayhem over, Adams returned with his energetic medium-pace to share the new ball with the fiery Shane Bond and, after a pounding of three consecutive fours in his fourth over from Chris Gayle, claimed three of the wickets in the top-order meltdown.
As Ramnaresh Sarwan, calm and collected, mounted a recovery from the despair of 46 for five in the 15th over, briefly with Ricardo Powell and then for 33.2 overs in a stand of 97 with the doughty Ridley Jacobs, Adams was one of the standouts in his team's dazzling exhibition of fielding.
Identified afterwards by captain Stephen Fleming as the difference between the teams, it accounted for the prized wicket of Brian Lara off his fourth ball and prevented a host of boundaries with acrobatic saves.
The New Zealanders, their effort concentrated by the certainty of an exit ticket defeat would bring, never allowed Sarwan and Jacobs to convert their consolidation into acceleration.
The game was up when Sarwan was bowled by left-arm spinner Danuel Vettori for 75 (seven fours, 98 balls) half-way through the 44th over with 63 still required.
Jacobs followed 13 runs later, snared for 50 (one six, three fours, 73 balls) by Jacob Oram's spectacular, diving catch at third man.
Nixon McLean's miserable return to international cricket was quickly ended by a farcical run out and Adams appropriately completed New Zealand's triumph with his fourth wicket, bowling Merv Dillon with the second ball of the final over.
Beaten by Sri Lanka in their opening match and told, by their national board, to stay away from next week's scheduled match against Kenya in Nairobi because of documented threats of terrorism, the New Zealanders would have been effectively eliminated by another loss.
It would have ensured the West Indies their passage without having the worry of a slip-up against any of the minor sides, Bangladesh, Canada and Kenya, or the more daunting test against Sri Lanka.
"This is a huge relief," Fleming said afterwards. "The tension and anxiety was visibly showing and it was very much a case of hanging tough."
Hooper, as he would, rejected the notion of complacency as a factor in the loss. But there is a very fine line between complacency and the wastefulness clearly evident in a crucial missed catch and in early batting.
New Zealand's total was an unsatisfactory 213 for seven in the 46th over when Adams hoisted Chris Gayle for a six over long-on one ball and the next high to square-leg. Marlon Samuels, on as substitute for Dillon, approached the swirling catch in his typically casual way - and it spilled from both hands.
The miss cost a further 28 as Adams and McCallum took 23 off Gayle's final two overs. In the end, it amounted to the margin of defeat.
It was no wonder Fleming credited the victory mainly to fielding. Nothing was more brilliant or critical than the run out of Lara.
The linchpin of the West Indies batting, primed for commanding centre stage by his 116 in Sunday's stunning win over South Africa, eased Adams off his legs towards the mid-wicket boundary and completed two to get off the mark.
As he turned for a third, Lou Vincent slid, picked up the ball and, in a tactic diligently practiced by the New Zealanders, rapidly relayed it 20 yards away to Chris Cairns. His throw was fast and deadly accurate, shattering the one stump at which he had to aim with Lara a yard short of his crease.
Minutes earlier, the West Indies were getting into stride as Gayle and Wavell Hinds, the unlikely bowling champion earlier, put on 34 in 9.2 overs.
Suddenly, Gayle slashed Adams to slip, Lara was run out, Hinds precisely picked out short extra-cover and Hooper, as he has so often done, hooked into long-leg's lap, both off Adams.
When Shivnarine Chanderpaul was LBW to the giant medium-pacer Jacob Oram four balls later, the West Indies were 46 for five and, in spite of Sarwan's calm orthodoxy and his partnership with Jacobs, the required rate gradually mounted to over 10 an over.
The West Indies were kept in check by the gravity of the situation, tight bowling and, above all, the sensational fielding. The deal was virtually settled when Sarwan was bowled by left-arm spinner Vettori in the 44th over with the required run rate nearly 10 an over and Jacobs was snared by the diving Oram. Until Samuels' miss, the West Indies held a strong grip on proceedings.
New Zealand were three down for 66 in the 16th over when Hooper magically pulled Hinds from his hat. He had rarely been called on to bowl in a one-day international but, on a holding pitch, his controlled medium-pace, with a trace of outswing, earned him the high-class wickets of Nathan Astle, Cairns and Lou Vincent off his last 18 balls.
His overall figures of three for 35 from 10 consecutive overs.
Astle was unlucky to be given caught behind for 46 (six fours, 70 balls) after a stand of 64 from 74 balls with Cairns. But there was no doubt about Hinds' next two wickets.
Cairns lost patience and drove a catch to long-off after scoring 37 off 44 balls and Vincent's drive was incepted by Hooper 60 yards closer to the bat, at short extra-cover.
Chris Harris was yorked by Gayle at 188 - but then came Adams to make his first, but not last, impression on proceedings.