New Zealand - So close but yet so far

Nathan Gitonga

The New Zealand cricket team or the Blackcaps, as it is popularly known, is one of the oldest cricketing nations and full members of ICC. New Zealand has done well in World Cups over the years but is yet to win it.

Cricket was introduced in New Zealand in the 19th century but they played their first official test match against England only in 1929. It took them a while to win their first match, which came against the West Indies in 1955. The years leading up to the 70s saw New Zealand play international cricket frequently mostly against England and West Indies. The team had played against Australia in 1929 but following a misunderstanding between the team boards over the amount to be paid to the Australians for touring New Zealand, Australia ceased playing with New Zealand until they resumed their ties in 1972.

1In the 70s, Blackcaps was a strong force in the cricketing world especially after Richard Hadlee, one of New Zealands best pace bowlers, made his international debut. Hadlee was the team's star bowler till he retired in 1990. He was joined in the 80s by a fleet of great players in the form of Martin Crowe, John Wright, Bruce Edgar, Andrew Jones, Ewen Chatfield Geoff Howarth, John Bracewell, Jeremy Coney, Lance Cairns, John F. Reid, Stephen Boock, and Ian Smith. The 90s saw the inclusion of players such as current captain Daniel Vettori, Danny Morison, Nathan Astle and Graig McMillan who joined under the leadership of New Zealand's most successful captain Stephen Fleming.

It is unfortunate that the Blackcaps, with such a strong lineup over the years, could not go on to win a World Cup. They came very close to it in 1975, 1979, 1992 and 1999 losing in the semis on all four occasions. In 1996, the team made it to the quarterfinals while the last edition saw them finish third again. One of their most memorable tournaments was the 1992 World Cup which they co-hosted with Australia. Their first match was against their archrivals and co-hosts Australia. As expected, the match was a tough contest but a century from star batsman Martin Crowe and brilliant bowling led by Craig McDermott ensured them a win by 37 runs. New Zealand continued their dream run until the semifinal when they met a resurgent Pakistan. In the closely contested match, New Zealand had to bow out, losing by 4 wickets to the Pakistanis who went on to win the tournament.

But their performance in the 2007 tournament can be termed as the revelation of the things to come. The team beat Kenya, Canada and England in the pool games convincingly and then went on to qualify for the semifinal stage before losing to Sri Lanka. Many of their star performers from the tournament like Scot Styris, Ross Taylor and Jacob Oram have made it in the squad coming to the Indian sub-continent this year which looks determined to set their World Cup record straight.

The other members of the 2011 squad include Daniel Vettori captain, Bowler; Brendon McCullum, Wicketkeeper; Nathan McCullum, All-Rounder, Hamish Bennett Bowler, James Franklin, Bowler; Martin Guptill, Batsman; Jamie How, Batsman; Kyle Mills ,Bowler, All-Rounder; Jesse Ryder, Batsman; Tim Southee, Bowler; Batsman, Kane Williamson, Batsman and Luke Woodcock, Bowler.

Though the Blackcaps have recently had forgettable home and away series against Pakistan and Bangladesh respectively, one cannot use that as a yard stick to measure their capabilities. The team is going through a rough patch. But if their World Cup record is anything to go by, then the Kiwis will only come back stronger. The team has a great captain and experienced campaigner in Daniel Vettori, who is a wily spinner and a dependable middle order batsman who can frustrate the opposition with his stubbornness on the crease. Jesse Ryder and Ross Taylor are hard hitters who can demolish the opposition if not stopped early. James Franklin will be another player to watch out for as his variation with the ball can run havoc in any opposition's batting lineup.