Former New Zealand skipper Stephen Fleming said that the nail-biting one-wicket triumph over co-hosts Australia at Auckland showed why Brendon McCullum's men can be considered as favourites to win the World Cup.
In his column for the ICC, Fleming said that the win showed why Brendon McCullum's men could be considered among the top contenders for the World Cup but there are lessons to learn too ahead of the knock-outs.
The former skipper added that the mood of belief among the public was best reflected by the chant that rang around Eden Park as McCullum was charging towards his 21-ball half century-'You're worse than England', shouted the fans at the Australia players", Stuff.co.nz reported.
According to Fleming, he had to stop and laugh at that, as he had never heard anything like that before from a New Zealand crowd.
Chasing a paltry target of 151, New Zealand batting-order stuttered as they went from 139-6 in the 21st over to 146-9 in the 23rd over, with just six more runs needed to win.
Mitchell Starc scalped six wickets as he wreaked havoc on McCullum's men with his menacing pace to almost give Australians a glimpse of victory.
However, Kane Williamson came to New Zealand's rescue as he smacked the winning six to guide McCullum's men to a one-wicket victory in the nail-biting thriller.