Ind vs NZ 4th ODI Trent Boult News | The untold story of Boult
"Am I not good enough?"
The current version of Trent Boult, devastating to the hilt, floors batsmen with a wry smile on his face. Against India at Hamilton, things weren't different, as Boult ripped the heart out of the batting line-up with quality seam bowling, ending with his fifth five-wicket haul in ODIs (equalling Richard Hadlee's record).
He knows his art inside-out and bares it for the world to see.
Flashback to the 2000s and a jittery Boult, still a teenager, was itching to make a mark. It wasn't an easy ride for him. In fact, a story in the NZ Herald recently documented how a disheartened Boult, not selected for his school side, almost gave up playing the game.
Sportskeeda spoke to former Kiwi all-rounder Llorne Howell, whose father, the late John Howell, oversaw the rise of Boult and Kane Williamson, during his time as an administrator in New Zealand cricket.
Speaking about the incident when a disillusioned Boult almost gave up, Llorne recalls: "The local team had all the players from one school. Trent went to another school, so he didn't get selected. He came out to our academy (Howell Cricket Academy) and said - "Am I no good? Can I not bowl?"
Howell recalls how his father instilled confidence in the youngster: "'You can bowl. You have a beautiful (delivery) release. Keep going with cricket'. And then he continued".
Very soon, Boult entered the U-19 circuit and played the junior World Cup in 2008. By 22, he had already broken into the national side.
Captain of the Bay of Plenty side in New Zealand, Llorne Howell led a talented bunch of cricketers, with Williamson and Boult being the rising stars. His first impression of the two clearly suggests how they stood out from the rest, even back then.
"Kane doesn't drink. Trent Boult practices really hard. Williamson is like an Indian cricketer. He never leaves his bat out of his hand, he is always training. Just like Indians, they used to work and train really hard".
Speaking about how Kane Williamson and Virat Kohli, part of the modern fab-four of batting, are different yet so similar, Howell said:
"Kane mentally stays very strong. He absolutely loves batting, and scoring runs. Kohli has got a different personality but he is equally determined to stay at the crease and score runs. They're determined to do well".
The retired Llorne Howell, along with Mathew Sinclair, now makes yearly trips to Bengaluru, helping schoolkids with the game. Who knows, he might carry the Howell legacy forward and mentor a Boult, or a Kane, in India.