Grant Elliott claims Taylor in 'really good form' despite uncharacteristic stints in WC so far

New Zealand all-rounder Grant Elliott has claimed that his teammate Ross Taylor has been in really good form, despite his lackluster performance in his last innings that came against Bangladesh last Friday.

Although it should have been a celebration for the middle-order batsman as he became the fourth New Zealand batsman to surpass 5,000 ODI runs in his innings of 56 and the fastest to achieve the milestone, many pointed to the uncharacteristic dull nature in which Taylor achieved the run's in their three-wicket win.

Taylor, who is normally aggressive in his batting, required 82 deliveries to reach 50 and added another six runs in 15 more deliveries before he was dismissed by a Nasir Hossain delivery, Sport24 reported.

Prior to the tournament, Taylor had been in brilliant from of 12 months ago when he scored successive tons against India then went on to hit another in December against Pakistan in the UAE to become just the fifth man to score three consecutive ODI centuries.

Skipper Brendon McCullum had said prior to the tournament he would not swap his 3-4 punch of Kane Williamson and Taylor for any other combination in the world.

However, Taylor has not shined in the tournament so far. Moreover, McCullum's strong innings at the top of the order and New Zealand's destructive bowling means that Taylor has not got much chance in the middle order.

Elliott pointed out the same, saying that the middle order really hasn't had a go, adding that they had a good go in the Sri Lanka and Pakistan series but insisted that New Zealand's bowlers have been exceptional and they haven't had to chase too many.

Elliot, who comes in at five immediately behind Taylor, is convinced that his teammate was tracking along nicely ahead of the quarterfinal against West Indies in Wellington on Saturday.

The all-rounder said that he believes Taylor, whose 5,000 ODI runs milestone came off 144 innings, three faster than Nathan Astle, has been in really good form.

Elliott claimed that the last game, Taylor played an innings, admitting that he did face a lot of balls but he played an innings that got them ready for the quarterfinals.

Elliott said that the way Taylor is striking the ball in the nets he has been striking it fairly sweetly, adding that the former skipper is a world class player and he is someone to be feared in the coming rounds.