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Black Sox captain Nathan Nukunuku slides into base during a trans-Tasman series test against Australia in 2014. He is picking this year's world softball championships, which start in Canada on Saturday, to be the toughest yet.
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Black Sox captain Nathan Nukunuku predicts this year's world championships will be the toughest yet with "six or seven teams" capable of winning the crown.
The New Zealand Black Sox will be chasing a record seventh title when the International Softball Federation (ISF) tournament starts in Saskatoon, Canada on Saturday (New Zealand Time).
Nukunuku, who will be attending his fifth world series after debuting as a 20-year-old in 2000, is confident the Kiwis are tracking well, but he said "almost half the field" would be in medal contention.
"I think there's six or seven teams at this one, who could possibly win it. It will the toughest tournament, to date."
Nukunuku, who has three ISF gold medals, said New Zealand's opening round opponent, Argentina, had "a great pitching staff" and Venezuela, who finished second to the Black Sox in Auckland, in 2013, "will be tough again".
"Australia with Adam Folkard [on the pitching mound] will be there or thereabouts. Team Canada, the home side, have put a lot of work into their team, Team USA have shown tremendous growth and have a lot more player availability, and Team Japan will be tough too, and then there's obviously us."
Nukunuku, who made his Black Sox debut in 1999, said men's softball was on the improve, globally, with several countries benefiting from more government funding.
"Being able to showcase the men's game will do nothing but good for the sport."
Nukunuku said the Black Sox have a challenging start to pool play, striking their three toughest rivals, Argentina, Great Britain and Canada, in their first three games.
Argentina have experienced pitcher Juan Potolicchio and canny catcher Bruno Motroni.
Canada traditionally boast some of the sport's best hitters and will be backed by a parochial crowd.
Nukunuku should have inside knowledge of the Great Britain team. "My two brothers-in-law [Kevin and Nopera Stockford] are playing for them, so they'll have a couple of decent hitters. The Stockford siblings are the brothers of Nukunuku's wife, Katrina, a New Zealand White Sox international.
Great Britain will have Canadian Rich Haldane and Kyle Linton, who played for Nukunuku's Auckland club Ramblers last season, and Australian Kyle Linton on their pitching mound. All are eligible through British ancestry.
Indonesia have withdrawn from the tournament, leaving a bye, which means the Black Sox will be without a game on Wednesday.
"For me, personally, it's disappointing because we only play one game a day [in section play]," Nukunuku said. Â "When you go down to one a day, it's always challenging when you have a 17-man squad."
The Indonesia game would have been an ideal time to get "some guys who hadn't had much game-time on the first three days" some vital match practice and allow the Black Sox to "work on developing our game before the playoffs".
Nukunuku is enjoying the challenge of leading arguably the Black Sox's least experienced world championships squad since the 2000 squad won the gold medal in South Africa under first-time coach Don Tricker.
Softball is in Nukunuku's blood. His older brother Dion won three gold medals with the Black Sox between 1996 and 2004.
Another brother, Israel Nukunuku, an assistant-coach with the New Zealand White Sox at last year's women's world championships, will be coaching the Netherlands men's team in Saskatoon.
BATTER UP
WHAT: Â The 2015 International Softball Federation men's world championship
WHERE: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
WHEN: Saturday, June 27 (NZ Time) to Monday, July 6
THE LINEUP
NEW ZEALAND BLACK SOX SQUAD
Pitchers
Heinie Shannon (Auckland)
Nik Hayes (Hutt Valley)
Kurt Schollum (Marlborough)
Catchers
Stephen Ratu (Canterbury)
Connor Peden (North Harbour)
Infielders
Brad Rona (North Harbour)
Tyson Byrne (Hutt Valley) - VICE CAPTAIN
Joel Evans (Hutt Valley)
Jerome Raemaki (Wellington)
Cole Evans (Auckland)
Josh Harbrow (Canterbury)
Outfielders-utilities
Ben Enoka (Auckland)
Thomas Enoka (Auckland)
Nathan Nukunuku (Auckland) - CAPTAIN
Campbell Makea (Wellington)
Wayne Laulu (Wellington)
Jovaan Hanley (Wellington)
Head coach: Mark Sorenson (Hutt Valley)
Assistant-coach: Carl Franklin (Canterbury)
Manager: Grant McCarroll (Hutt Valley)
Pitching coach: Darren Rea (United States)
ROLL OF HONOUR
5th world championship: Nukunuku, Rona
4th: Shannon (1 with Samoa)
3rd: Ben Enoka
2nd: Ratu, Laulu, Byrne, Hayes, Thomas Enoka (1 with Samoa)
1st: Schollum, Peden, Raemaki, Joel Evans, Cole Evans, Harbrow, Makea, Hanley
GOLD MEDALS
3-Nukunuku, Rona
1- Ben Enoka, Byrne, Shannon, Hayes, Laulu
NZ'S RECORD
1st: 1976 (jointly with USA and Canada), 1984, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2013
2nd: 1988, 1992, 2009
3rd: 1966, 1972.Â
DID YOU KNOW:Â
* The Black Sox have only missed out on a world championship medal twice, in 1968 (fifth), and 1980 (fourth).
* Three Kiwis have four gold medals, Mark Sorenson, Thomas Makea and Jarrad Martin.
2015 COMPETING TEAMS (with 2013 placings)
NEW ZEALAND (1st)
VENEZUELA (2nd)
AUSTRALIA (3rd)
ARGENTINA (4th)
CANADA (5th)
JAPAN (6th)
USA (8th)
GREAT BRITAIN (9th)
CZECH REPUBLIC (11th)
MEXICO (13th)
NETHERLANDS (14TH)
PHILIPPINES (15th)
GUATEMALA (n/a)
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC (n/a)
DENMARK (n/a)
BLACK SOX SCHEDULE
(Times in NZT)
Saturday, June 27: Â vs Argentina, 3pm
Sunday, June 28: vs Great Britain, 2.30pm
Monday, June 29: vs Canada, 9am
Tuesday, June 30: vs Philippines, 12pm
Thursday, July 2: vs Guatemala, 4am
Friday, July 3: vs Czech Republic, 6.30am
Top four from each pool to the playoffs
Saturday July 4-Sunday July 5: Playoffs
Monday July 6: Championship game, 8.30am
 - Stuff
