Gayle still in doubt for quarter-final

Talismanic West Indies batsman Chris Gayle has trained with his teammates on Friday but gave no suggestion he will be fit for Saturday's World Cup quarter-final against New Zealand in Wellington.

The big-hitting opener spent most of a light session - his first of the week - watching on in cold conditions.

After days of treatment on the back injury which ruled him out of last week's final pool win over United Arab Emirates, the 35-year-old appeared to be out-of-sorts on Friday.

He was put through separate fielding drills and throw-downs, before keeping movement to a minimum during a short batting session in the nets.

Captain Jason Holder says a decision on Gayle will be left until the morning of the game.

Holder then boldly declared an already under-strength West Indies team can win the game without him.

"He's one of the most feared batsmen in world cricket so to have Chris in my squad, just his presence alone is felt," Holder said.

"But we won the last game without him so I'd say we can win without him.

"Obviously he's been a very good player for us over the years but we've shown we've got people to fit the bill."

Gayle's 215 off 147 balls against Zimbabwe in Canberra has been the standout West Indies feat of the tournament so far.

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Gayle celebrates the first ever World Cup double century // Getty

His omission would result in a reprieve for out-of-form opener Dwayne Smith while Gayle's right-arm spinners may need to be replaced by a specialist tweaker - either Sulieman Benn or Nikita Miller.

If Gayle is ruled out, it would be another exercise in gap-plugging for the Caribbean side, who are without some of their most talented players at this tournament.

Allrounders Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard were overlooked for the tournament following a dispute between the players and West Indies officials while the world's fourth-ranked bowler, spinner Sunil Narine, is undergoing remedial work on his action.

Batsman Darren Bravo was replaced mid-tournament because of a hamstring injury.

Despite the odds stacked against them, young skipper Holder is adamant they are capable of inflicting a first loss on the Black Caps at the tournament.

"People pretty much wrote us off at the beginning of the tournament," he said.

"They didn't expect us to get to the quarter-final stage and now we're here.

"New Zealand can be beaten. We're just going out all guns blazing tomorrow and just giving it our all."

The match will be played at Wellington's Westpac Stadium, where the Black Caps have won 10 of their last 12 games, making it their most successful venue anywhere for one-day internationals since 2006.

All three games against the West Indies were comfortably won at the ground which only hosts a game or two of cricket in any year.

Predominantly used for rugby and soccer, it was the scene of New Zealand's scintillating seven-wicket win over England last month, their best performance of the World Cup.

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NZ thrashed England in front of a packed house in Wellington // Getty

Coach Mike Hesson said this week the quirky bounce of the drop-in pitch was something his team had adapted to.

However, captain Brendon McCullum joined veteran spinner Daniel Vettori in downplaying the influence of the surface.

"It does play slightly differently but I don't think it's going to be a pitch that will determine the result," McCullum said.

"I think it will be a surface that, whichever team plays best, they should win."

It leaves a vexing decision for McCullum if he wins the toss - a difficult assignment for him in recent times.

Fresh in his mind is Tim Southee's devastating seam assault on England which reaped 7-33 when New Zealand bowled first.

However, the team batting first has won seven of the last eight ODIs between New Zealand and the West Indies.