Dilpreet Bajwa (Canada Captain): "(After first innings) We were a bit confident. Of course, we had one bowler short, Khalim Rana, but we were a bit confident that the ball was going to spin. When the Kiwis were bowling, the ball was spinning. But yeah, hard luck happened. Being one bowler short affected us.
(On the opening stand with Yuvraj) I think we were sure from the top order. In the last two games, we were losing wickets in the powerplay. So our plan was to stay at the crease and play as positively as we could. And I think hats off to Yuvraj. He's the youngest player in the World Cup and finished with a hundred in this match. I think it’s a very proud moment for him, and a proud moment for all Canadians that we had a hundred-run opening partnership against one of the biggest teams.
When you play against these teams, we, as an Associate side, are lacking, but we are learning quickly. In the last two games, we were losing wickets, but we planned accordingly and did well in this game.
(Pressure while bowling to NZ batters) Of course, yeah. When we had one bowler short, it made things difficult for the other bowlers. We were thinking about who was going to bowl next. When we got two quick wickets in the powerplay, they were the ones scoring for New Zealand in the last few games. But when we got them out, I was looking at our bowling options and we didn’t really have one there. So yeah, we lacked a bit.
(On the Associate cricket landscape) For Associate cricket, I feel like we need more matches against these big teams, like full-member nations. When we get that, I think we’re going to compete with them. Right now, we are just competing, but hopefully, with more games, we’ll start beating them. In the last World Cu,p we beat Ireland, and we’re still looking for one here. For Canadian cricket, I think people are going to start following the sport because of Yuvraj. He got a hundred and we had a big partnership. So now I think people will follow Canadian cricket too.
(On the last group game against Afghanistan) Yeah, it’s our last game, so nothing to lose. It’s all there to win. We’re going to go with full confidence and hopefully do well."