One-day series, Hobart: Australia v New ZealandMatch begins 2300 Saturday GMT
New Zealand begin their tri-series campaign against Australia in Hobart on Sunday, with paceman Shane Bond hoping to continue an impressive record.
The 31-year-old paceman took 14 wickets in four matches against Australia in the corresponding series five years ago, including 5-25 at Adelaide.
"They're a team I have done well against so I feel pretty confident going into this match," said Bond
"Psychologically it's about not getting daunted and coming hard at them."
Like England, New Zealand have a dismal record against Australia, losing 15 of their last 17 meetings.
Skipper Stephen Fleming saw his side draw the Test, one-day and Twenty20 series at home to Sri Lanka prior to this tournament.
"We're not exactly brimming with confidence, but we've got a good understanding of our one-day game," he said.
"Their top seven is very strong but if you put pressure on any team they can crack"
Shane Bond
Meanwhile, Bond, who captured a memorable 6-23 against Ricky Ponting's team in the 2003 World Cup Super Six match in Port Elizabeth, is preparing his teammates for a daunting mental challenge.
"Australia like to take on new players especially and I'm sure they'll target some of our new players in this series, but if you keep coming hard at them it creates opportunities," he said.
Bond was left out of the early stages of the Champions Trophy last year because of injury concerns and took five wickets in three matches.
He also missed the opening two matches of the home series with Sri Lanka, before taking three wickets in two matches.
"The encouraging thing for me is that I haven't bowled as well as I'd have liked but I've still taken wickets," he said.
"They're a very good one-day team, they always seem to step up against Australia and we've had some very tight battles"
Michael Clarke
The paceman has taken a total of 24 wickets in seven matches against the Aussies, dismissing key man Ponting six times, but is well aware of their strength in depth.
"Their top seven is very strong but if you put pressure on any team they can crack.
"You can't just restrict these guys to four an over and not take wickets - we have to take wickets and be aggressive."
Australia and New Zealand could meet as many as 10 times over the next few months, both at home and away.
And batsman Michael Clarke realised the importance of striking the first blow.
"They're a very good one-day team, they always seem to step up against Australia and we've had some very tight battles," he said.
"We've got to play them here and then we go to New Zealand before the World Cup, so we'll be looking to hopefully get our first win against them here."
Australia (from): R Ponting (capt), A Gilchrist, N Bracken, S Clark, M Clarke, M Hayden, B Hogg, M Hussey, M Johnson, B Lee, G McGrath, A Symonds, C White.
New Zealand (from): S Fleming (capt), A Adams, N Astle, S Bond, J Franklin, P Fulton, M Gillespie, H Marshall, M Mason, B McCullum, C McMillan, J Patel, R Taylor, D Vettori.
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