The lost and renewed zeal of the New Zealand ODI team

As a kid brought up in the 90′s, the memory of that decade’s ODI cricket still clings to memory like a vague yesternight’s dream. Australia was an invincible unit that invoked fear and respect. India was an underperformer with some majestic individuals. Pakistan was a mercurial and dangerous team. South Africa was a well-balanced powerful ODI line-up. Sri Lanka was a formidable team. West Indies showed glimpses of class. And then there was New Zealand: Sharp and agile, a team I admired. New Zealand had that zeal of ODI cricket: running quickly between wickets, playing aggressively and diving till the last breath. It was the team which set the standards of ‘sharpness’. They had all-rounders coming in to bat at 9 and 10. Chris Harris, Chris Cairns, Stephen Fleming, Nathan Astle, Craig McMillan, Matthew Horne and Dion Nash – the names ruled the 90′s golden era of NZ cricket, and the squad gained a reputation for making it to semifinals and falling a couple of steps short of glory, in 1992 and 1999. The late 90′s and early 2000s saw Daniel Vettori, Scott Styris and Shane Bond emerging onto the big scene. The promise grew bigger. Lou Vincent, Daryl Tuffey and Brendon McCullum added strength. Vincent was a livewire. His fielding made me wish the ball went to him every single time. The times looked good, despite the results. All seemed good until the ICL happened.

BCCI treated ICL as a rival league and even persuaded other boards to not pick cricketers playing in it. NZ cricket was the worst victim along with Bangladesh. Shane Bond, Lou Vincent, Andre Adams, Hamish Marshall and Daryl Tuffey were ignored for selection. Few marquee names had retired, and the squad looked like a new bunch all of a sudden, under Daniel Vettori. Though the ‘semifinalists’ tag still stuck to them, NZ cricket touched new lows. The losses made them drop under West Indies and compete with the enthusiastic Bangladesh side in the rankings table.

By 2013, the ODI powers have been relinquished from Aussie fists. India is a powerful ODI unit. South Africa is a dangerous group to deal with. Sri Lanka and Pakistan are a shadow of their former selves. West Indies have been mercurial. And NZ, as many will argue, seems to be on the up again. I watched the NZ-South Africa ODI series, and 2-1 was a result any ODI side would be proud to return with. After a 0-3 beating from SL, NZ raised their game to beat SA and even England in the first ODI series. Nicol, Williamson, Taylor and McCullum make for a good line-up. Franklin is a really useful cricketer who can walk at 6 for any current ODI squad. McClenaghan seems a good find for the Kiwis. Even Munro scored a half century at No.5 in the third ODI against South Africans.

It felt promising, the way Williamson scored 145. It seemed promising, the way McClenaghan took a four-for twice. It seemed promising to see different men put their hands up and score. It seemed promising that the zeal had returned. I might be an Indian cricket fan by heart, but I always loved the diversity and colour NZ brought to the cricket fraternity.

The zeal is certainly not a new thing to see from New Zealand, it evokes memories of good times. A healthy NZ makes for healthy ODI cricket. Hope it doesn’t look back from here.