Zimbabwe skipper Hamilton Masakadza believes Chris Gayle remains West Indies' chief threat despite his slump in form as the nations prepare to face-off in their third Cricket World Cup fixture.

Gayle averages just 14.42 in 19 one-day internationals since his last century in the 50-over format, which came against Sri Lanka in June 2013.

The destructive batsman has struggled in the World Cup thus far, posting an uncharacteristically cautious 36 in West Indies' opening-game defeat to Ireland before falling for just four in his side's win over Pakistan last Saturday.

However, Masakadza feels Gayle is still the Windies' key man, and is well aware of the 35-year-old's attacking prowess ahead of Tuesday's Pool B meeting in Canberra. 

When asked who he sees as the main danger from Zimbabwe's opponents, captain Masakadza replied: "It would have to be Chris Gayle. If he fires, he can really take a game away from you.

"If he gets going, he's pretty hard to stop. He hasn't really played that well in the recent past, but that doesn't make him any less of a player.

"I still think he's a very good player, and I still think he's their biggest threat."

Zimbabwe mirrored the Windies' response to losing their opening match, with Masakadza's men bouncing back from their loss to South Africa by beating the United Arab Emirates by four wickets. 

Masakadza, who hit a superb 80 in a losing cause against the Proteas before being dismissed for one against UAE, was impressed with the manner of the Windies' victory over Pakistan.

After setting their opponents 311 to win, the Windies reduced Waqar Younis' team to 1-4 in reply, with Andre Russell and Jerome Taylor taking three wickets apiece as they posted a comfortable 150-run victory.

And Masakadza is well aware of the need for Zimbabwe to be fully focused throughout Tuesday's match.

"I think it's going to be really important for us to start off well, both with our batting and our bowling because I think their top order is very dangerous," he added.

"Similarly, the batting. Pakistan were four down early, and you can't really recover from a position like that."