Want a thriller? Come to Eden Park

For all the talk of short boundaries at Eden Park, the bowlers have more than their fair share of moments. Having been put in, New Zealand crashed to 156 all out (98 of the runs coming from the McCullum brothers) as firstly Jason Holder and Ravi Rampaul - plus one of Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor's mix-ups - then Dwayne Bravo did the damage. But West Indies made heavy weather of the chase as Mitchell McClenaghan took 5 for 58. The innings had barely passed halfway when Holder fell leaving them needing 10 to win with two wickets in hand. Darren Sammy was not taking any chances, clubbing McClenaghan for a six and a four in the space of three balls.

A Martin Guptill century had anchored New Zealand towards 314, although India's bowlers fought back when it looked like 350 was touchable. In turn, they were swiftly out of the blocks but 64 without loss became 79 for 4. MS Dhoni helped rebuild, but when he fell for 50, brilliantly caught by Tim Southee, the game again looked lost at 184 for 6 in the 36th over. However, R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja produced a rollicking stand of 85 in nine overs yet when last man Varun Aaron walked in, 29 were needed off 13 balls. Jadeja was given a life in the penultimate over, still 12 off three balls was cutting it fine. A four and six later it was two off one, but he could only drill the next delivery to one of the cluster of in-fielders. All square.

A bizarre game. Australia's 80 for 1 became 106 for 9 in one of the most dramatic World Cup collapses (for an hour or so, anyway) as Trent Boult curved the ball through the middle order with five wickets in 17 balls. They scrambled to 151, but Brendon McCullum made minced meat of the new ball with 50 off 24 deliveries. When he found mid-off, New Zealand were 78 for 2 in the eighth over. It wasn't even the dinner break. Then it was over to Mitchell Starc. Either side of the interval he castled Ross Taylor and Grant Elliott with consecutive balls. Still, Kane Williamson and Corey Anderson got New Zealand to within 21 when Anderson slogged to mid-on. In the blink of an eye, and a flash of zing bails, Boult walked in with Starc on a hat-trick and six required. Boult somehow survived, but Williamson wasn't going to wait to see for how much longer. The next ball he received he drilled Pat Cummins over the short straight boundary. It wasn't even dark, but everyone needed a lie down.

Dale Steyn. Grant Elliott. Six. That's almost enough to say, but a magnificent game had many strands. South Africa were threatening to cut loose through AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis when one of the most important showers in New Zealand history blew through and zapped South Africa's momentum. David Miller's 18-ball 49 ensured it remained a daunting chase, but New Zealand didn't feel it was out of sight. It was firmly in view when McCullum plundered 59 off 26 ferocious deliveries in an opening stand of 71 in 6.1 overs. Elliott arrived with consolidation needed and alongside Anderson added 103 in 16.2 overs. It came down to 23 off two overs. After Elliott was dropped, it was 12 off the last (or 11 for the tie which was also good enough for New Zealand) then 10 off 4. Daniel Vettori squirted the most important boundary of his life. Elliott was back on strike with five needed off two. It was back-of-a-length from Steyn. Elliott saw it early. Swung for the hills. Connected.

Something a little more mundane this time, but still a frantic finish. New Zealand had appeared to time their chase pretty well needing 41 off the last five but there wasn't much room for error. Then Anderson was given a reprieve when Billy Bowden didn't spot an edge off Rahat Ali (Pakistan had used up their review) which was followed by consecutive sixes - 26 off 24 left breathing room and 13 off 18, after Mohammad Amir's last over went for 13, should have been a cakewalk. Somehow, though, Pakistan pushed it out to six off the final over. Mitchell Santner pricked the tension with a crunching cover drive and after two teasing dot deliveries drilled the winning hit down the ground.

This wasn't looking like a thriller. For the third consecutive time at Eden Park, Australia's top order had been blown away. From 67 for 6 chasing 287, they would even do well to just make a game of it. Marcus Stoinis, in just his second ODI, was 73 off 84 balls when Cummins, who had 36, was stumped with Australia needing 91 off nine overs. Then Stoinis really started swinging. Three sixes came off the next over from James Neesham. But just defiance, right? Starc came and went: 61 off 42 balls with one wicket in hand. Stoinis' sixth six brought up a stunning century and three more followed off the next seven deliveries. He then survived a run out chance and a huge appeal for caught behind. Nineteen needed off 24, astonishingly the run rate wasn't an issue. Two sixes later and the target was in single figures, the stand was worth 52 and Josh Hazlewood hadn't faced a ball. Queue lengthy field changes. Southee them jammed in a yorker, Stoinis dug it out to Williamson at short mid-on (one of those field changes) but Hazlewood, similarly to Allan Donald in 1999 World Cup semi-final, had charged up the pitch. Williamson collected the ball, wasn't balanced but somehow managed to back-hand it into the stumps.