Our pick for ICC
Chairman of New Zealand Cricket Alan Isaac, 58, has trumped former Australian Prime Minister John Howard as the region’s nominee to take the ICC’s vice-presidency, which after a two-year term leads to the top…
News of New Zealanders via Global Media
Death Bowler Signed Up
Middlemore-born fast bowler Ian Butler, 28, has signed with Gloucestershire as their second overseas player for the Friends Provident T2. Butler, who previously played for the county in 23, has played in eight Test…
Recall the puppeteer
Now retired from Test cricket, The Hindu reflects on Christchurch-born bowler Shane Bond’s career describing him as “a once in a generation” who “not since Richard Hadlee” has a New Zealand bowler “tormented the…
Harmony and Fury
The BBC’s Sydney correspondent Nick Bryant “reflects on New Zealand’s mix of controlled fury, subtle charm and social harmony, and asks why the rest of the world can’t be more like it” in an…
Sussex Signing
Dunedin cricketer Brendon McCullum, 28, has signed with Sussex for this season’s Twenty20 competition. The big-hitting wicketkeeper-batsman replaces Sri Lanka’s Tillakaratne Dilshan. “Brendon was always on our shortlist for 2010 and once New Zealand’s tour to Zimbabwe…
Chronicle of Pace
Sir Richard Hadlee’s Changing Pace – A Memoir is reviewed by The Hindu’s W V Raman who writes, “The modesty and dignity with which Sir Richard, 58, fulfilled his responsibilities as a selector and brand ambassador is…
Win for NZ in Napier
New Zealand outran Australia by two wickets to win the opening Chappell-Hadlee one-day international at Napier’s Maclean Park. Scott Styris and Shane Bond were the unlikely heroes for New Zealand; chasing 275 for eight,…
Great Appointment
Former New Zealand Test batsman Mark Greatbatch, 46, has been appointed Black Caps coach joining Mark O’Donnell and Shane Jurgensen on the team’s coaching panel. Greatbatch, who is already on the national selection panel,…
Consistency and then Some..
The NZ Black Caps followed up their Test series victory over India with an unassailable 4-0 lead in the one-dayers. The Kiwis have remained on top form against the somewhat disappointing tourists, with stand-out performances from fast-bowlers…
Bond Leaves Test cricket
Christchurch-born paceman Shane Bond, 34, has retired from Test cricket and though he played just 18 Tests after making his debut in 2001, he claimed 87 wickets at an impressive average of 22.09. “It’s…
O’Brien to Middlesex
Black Caps seamer Iain O’Brien, 33, has retired from international cricket and joined Middlesex as their overseas player for 2010 having spent last season at Leicestershire. The right-armer, who is also a prolific blogger, made his…
Return to Form (Momentarily)
Christchurch fast bowler Shane Bond’s return to Test cricket has seen the Black Caps score a 32-run win over Pakistan in the first Test at Dunedin’s University Oval. Bond, 34, took eight wickets and the man-of-the-match…
Worth His Weight
“Daniel Vettori is a prime example of what talent coupled with hard work can achieve,” writes Partab Ramchand for DreamCricket.com. “A cricketer is obviously gifted when he is thought good enough to make his Test debut at…
Youth will prevail
“Of the finalists in this year’s Champions Trophy, though, it should be New Zealand that England look to for a degree of inspiration and not without a little shame,” writes The Times’ chief cricket…
Bond is back
After a two-year break from international cricket Christchurch fast bowler Shane Bond, 34, is ready for a comeback starting with a one-day tri-series in Sri Lanka on September 2 and 4. Bond is currently in Chennai…
Bowden fronts up
Cricket umpire Billy Bowden has backed cricket’s review system by which players will be able to refer umpires’ decisions to a television official for review. The system will be implemented in all Test matches from October….
Man of the match
Captain of the Black Caps and Delhi Daredevils player Daniel Vettori, 30, is interviewed by the Hindustan Times about his role as spinner in T20 and his adjustment to the Indian Premier League. “You have to…
High Time for Cricket
Two teams consisting of 30 New Zealanders, Australians and Britons will play a Twenty20 cricket match at the foot of Mount Everest in Gorak Shep, which is at an altitude of 5165 metres on April 21…
New Black Cap
Newly-appointed Black Caps manager Dave Currie – chef de mission of the New Zealand team for the 2004 and 2008 Olympics campaigns and the 2002 and 2006 Commonwealth Games – has worn many hats…
Viva Vettori
At 30, Black Caps captain Daniel Vettori is “a veteran among the greats” according to International Herald Tribune writer Huw Richards, “and like Joe DiMaggio in baseball and the Australian rugby players David Campese…
Vettori one of the best
Black Caps captain Daniel Vettori, 29, is ranked amongst the top International bowlers on the ICC Player Rankings for One Day International bowlers. The left-arm spinner took six wickets at an impressive average of 12.33 in the…
Celebrating the Centurions
Dunedin-born Glenn Turner, one of ten living batsmen to have achieved 100 first-class centuries, was honoured at London’s Hilton Hotel, where Turner’s bat, amongst other memorabilia, was auctioned for charity with a bid of NZ$13,937. The…
Chip off the Old Block
Jeremy Coney, as announcer on Sky TV’s ‘Test Match Special’, is “cricket’s answer to the poet and critic Tom Paulin”, according to Guardian sports blogger Rob Bagchi. A guest on TMS for the last 20 years,…
Out of the Shade
Sir Richard Hadlee and his father, Walter are probably one of the most successful father-son sporting combinations according to the Guardian’s Will Buckley, but this son doesn’t want to be compared. Richard Hadlee,…
Oram Fit for Lords
Palmerston North Black Caps all-rounder Jacob Oram, 29, has recovered from stress-related injury and is braced for the first Test against England at Lords on May 15. Oram’s economy rate of 2.4 is the best among…
Bond Says It Like It Is
Shane Bond, ex-Black Cap fast bowler and now in the money at the Indian Cricket League’s Delhi Giants, says the decision to go to India is a “no brainer“. Though he will double his income,…
Fleming’s New Game Plan
Stephen Fleming made a gracious departure from the Black Caps on the fourth day of the final Test against England in Napier. Although New Zealand had a disappointing loss, Fleming left Test cricket much as he…
World’s Fastest Win
The Black Caps have won their three-match home series against Bangladesh in record-breaking style. NZ reached Bangladesh’s total of 93 all out with 44 overs and ten wickets to spare, replacing India’s 2001 thrashing of Kenya…
Black Caps Victorious
Three famous victories in a row have seen the Black Caps complete a “black-wash” of the world champion Australians and claim the Chappell-Hadlee series. Over a period of six days the Black Caps broke a number of…
Astle Bows Out
Nathan Astle has retired from international cricket as one of NZ’s most successful ever batsmen, just six months before the 2007 World Cup. In his twelve year career he has accumulated a total of 11,792 Test…
NZ Cricket Patriarch Remembered
Walter Hadlee, involved in NZ test cricket from the start has died in Christchurch aged 91. A productive and aggressive batsman, Hadlee played 11 Tests for NZ, eight of those as captain, and later served as national…
Black Caps Start as They Mean to Go On
The Black Caps made a fine start to their 2006 season, cruising to victory in the five-match ODI home series against Sri Lanka. NZ won the deciding third match at Jade Stadium by five wickets. Nathan…
Great Expectations
Former Black Cap Mark Greatbatch is the new coach for British county cricket side Warwickshire. Greatbatch is also Director of the Warwickshire Academy, and has previously coached at Giggleswick School in Yorkshire and at Edgbaston.
Mark the Great
Mark Greatbatch comes in at number four on the Guardian‘s list of all-time greatest Test cricket rearguards. “He was better known as the man who invented pinch-hitting at the 1992 World Cup, but Mark Greatbatch could knuckle…
You Say Chappell-Hadlee I Say Hadlee-Chappell
Sir Richard Hadlee had his audience in stitches at the launch of the inaugural Chappell-Hadlee Trophy series in Melbourne. Among other quips, he noted that the event was called the Hadlee-Chappell Trophy back home. The Black Caps…
Double Milestone
The Black Caps’ tour of Bangladesh was a resounding success, with NZ winning both the Test and ODI series by comfortable margins. During the second Test captain Stephen Fleming overtook Martin Crowe as NZ’s…
Guardian: “NZ Near One-day Perfection”
The Black Caps cruised to victory in the NatWest ODI tri-series against England and the West Indies, beating the latter by a resounding 107 runs in the final. Daniel Vettori was named Man of the Match for…
Craig Puts Middlesex to the Spear
Ex-Black Cap Craig Spearman broke W.G Grace’s record for the best ever innings in an English county cricket match, hitting a staggering 341 runs for Gloucester against Middlesex. The legendary Grace made 318 not out for Gloucester…
Hero’s Exit for Cairns
Chris Cairns retired from international Test cricket with a bang on the Black Caps tour of England. In the second Test he beat Viv Richards’ previous record of 84 Test sixes, knocking four sixes and 10 fours…
The Wright Stuff
John Wright led India to a historic Test series win against traditional rivals Pakistan – the side’s first on Pakistani soil. The former NZ player is the first non-Indian to coach the national cricket team. …
History Made by “Best Side Ever”
31 March 2004 – The NZ Black Caps have leaped from 8th place to 3rd in world one-day cricket rankings thanks to their first ever series win over South Africa. “It feels great,” said captain Stephen Fleming…
Sun Shines on Black Caps
The Black Caps won a thrilling one-day international series against Pakistan 4-1, with captain Stephen Fleming leading by example. Highlights included an unbeaten century by Scott Styris in the first match, another by…
End of a Long Innings
Gordon Lindsay Weir, the world’s oldest surviving Test cricketer, died in Auckland on October 31 aged 95 years and 151 days. Known in cricketing circles as ‘Dad,’ the right-hand batsman and medium-pace bowler played 11 Tests for…
Umpiring as an Art Form
BBC feature on NZ cricket umpire, Billy Bowden, tracks his unlikely rise to the top of the white-coated ranks. Bowden fell into umpiring after rheumatoid arthritis halted his own career as a player….
Fleming Top Scores with Critics
The NZ Black Caps scored a rare overseas tournament victory, winning the Bank Alfalah Cup triangular series against Sri Lanka and Pakistan. Stephen Fleming – named man of the match in the final versus Pakistan -…
Two-ton Fleming Squashes Records
A testament to leading by example, Black Caps captain Stephen Fleming hit a career-best 274 not out in the first Test against Sri Lanka. Fleming’s total is the second highest test score ever made by a…
Black Caps’ Dark Horse
Stephen Fleming will come out looking good no matter where NZ places in this year’s Cricket World Cup. So says Johannesburg’s The Star, which included the Black Caps’ captain in their official “World Hunks XI.” “One…
Superb, Eh?
New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming played the “innings of his career when his team most needed it”, scoring 133 not out, to lead the Black Caps to a comprehensive 9 wicket win over hosts South Africa…
Windies Wiped Out
Confirming their 3rd place ranking in the ICC World Test Cricket Championship the Black Caps achieved a remarkable milestone with their first ever test series victory against the West Indies on…
Colonial Post
New Zealand beat England for the first time at home in 18 years as the series finishes 1-1. “New Zealand are a very resilient side and they are very hard to break down”, says England captain…
Runs in the Family
“I might have more than 5,000 test runs – but he makes 40 million bucks a movie!”, proclaims Kiwi cricket legend Martin Crowe about cousin Russell.
School of Hard Knocks
England casts envious eyes on Lincoln’s NZ Cricket High Performance Centre: “An opera singer and a former primary school headmaster have much to do with New Zealand’s present official ranking as the fifth-best team…
Edge-zone
“One of the greatest ever test innings … unbelievable savagery”. Nathan Astle produced the most astounding display of cricketing artistry in hitting the fastest double-century in test cricketing history in the first test against England, reaching 200 off…
Cometh the Hour
Nathan Astle comes to play with “a superb and dominating” unbeaten 122 for the Black Caps to help them take the series 3-2 over “plucky losers” England and deservedly finish the summer with a trophy. Hitting the…
89 All Out!
“England were routed by an undeniably better team”, proclaims The Guardian, as New Zealand dismisses the poms for their second lowest one-day score ever (80) in the 2nd ODI in Wellington. Meanwhile Stephen…
Most Valuable Harry
“Chris Harris is the bald bloke who must have been in the New Zealand team since they started playing cricket. He hangs around at backward point taking spectacular catches, bats irritatingly in the lower middle order…
