B is for… (Part 2)

Part 2: Bodyline to bunnies, with a victorious stop in Brisbane

(Courtesy of Getty Images)

In part one I took a short journey through a small part of New Zealand’s cricketing history and a period of unrivalled West Indian dominance over a struggling England. If you missed it, read Bartlett to Blunt via the Basin.

Part two is largely based in the West Island (Australia, for the uninitiated) – the world’s foremost cricketing icon, the series that set to nullify his dominance, a Brisbane victory that will go down in the annals of history (but not for out trans-Tasman friends), plus reading and rabbits…

A is for Ambrose

Cricket is an in-depth game, it’s full of idiosyncrasies and nuances unlike any other sporting theatre. We are all drawn to the great game for different reasons – the individual battles, the statistics, the history – the list is endless. 

My cricketing A-Z isn’t about detailing the basics – that path is well-trodden. It’s written for things I love in cricket - those that have made an impact on me, that draw me to the game. They may not be the played in the “V” but they are a part of what makes cricket sing for me. It’s unlikely they’ll match your list but they’ll offer a trip down cricket’s memory lane, and hopefully some debate – there’s little better than healthy discussion.

Please excuse the strong New Zealand and West Indian bias – they shaped my love of our great game.

Over the coming weeks (read: months) I’ll work my way from A to Z, and given more time to reflect I’ll no doubt have to back track and make some additions, but here’s a start.

When the Calypso Kings ruled Babylon

The fast and the furious (courtesy of ESPNcricnfo)

More than 30 years ago, New Zealand and the West Indies did battle at the end of a long Southern summer. The 1979/80 home test series was full of talking points, though many of them had little to do with the quality of the cricket played in the middle. As the two sides again prepare to do battle in the Caribbean it’s apt to look back at a series that proved a significant milestone for both countries.

It may seem unusual that I have chosen to reflect on such an ill-fated series, but the conduct on the field is only a small part of the significance of that series. It was more about what those three tests started than what happened on the field of play. For the Windies it was their last series defeat in 15 years – the beginning of the Fire in Babylon era. While there was no Spark in Wellington to follow for the Kiwis, their first test series victory in New Zealand would see them embark on a 12 year unbeaten series run at home.

New Zealand's Wisden Cricketers of the Year - winning is a habit

A Crowe cover-drive: poetry

Since the end of the 1979/80 summer and a series victory against the West Indies at home, New Zealand has continued to record any number of firsts. They went 12 years unbeaten at home in a test series following what was a spiteful series marred by some of the worst acts seen on a cricketing field. The actions of Windies legends Colin Croft, Michael Holding and future ICC Match Referee Clive Lloyd sully my memories of the start of an era of West Indian dominance. How severe would Lloyd have been in his official capacity on players who shoulder charged an umpire, kicked stumps out of the ground when a decision didn’t go their way, or kept their charges in the changing rooms as a protest for 12 minutes after play was due to resume?

New Zealand's Wisden Cricketers of the Year – Sir Richard Hadlee

Sir Richard in familiar pose

I had intended for this piece to cover New Zealand’s four ‘modern’ inductees to Wisden’s Five Cricketers of the Year but the more I read about Sir Richard Hadlee, and the more personal memories I recalled, I thought it was apt that Paddles was shown the reverence he deserves and exalted to a spot on his own. Why? Yes, he was a fantastic cricketer – there is little sensible argument that can sway pundits away from the premise he was, and will likely always be, New Zealand’s finest cricketer.

But the true confirmation of his greatness? He is the only New Zealand sportsman to regularly, and almost singlehandedly, move the gaze of a sporting nation away from the All Blacks, and as with the performances of the most dominant rugby force on the planet he was able to change the mood of our tiny island nation. At a time when Fox, Fitzpatrick, Buck and Kirwan were at their prime Sir Richard usurped them all as New Zealand’s most recognisable sporting star.