Top 5 wicket-keepers produced by New Zealand
It is often insinuated that quality wicket-keepers form the nerve centre of teams in all formats of the game. Apart from concentrating their energy on grabbing stirring catches as well as effecting match-turning stumpings, they also have to contribute with handy runs lower down the order and offer useful pointers to captains who desperately seek assistance.
Extra Cover: Top 5 Test all-rounders from New Zealand
In order of quality, here are five of the best wicket-keepers produced by New Zealand across all formats. It is pertinent to note that the list has not been compiled based on statistics alone and batting ability has not been accorded as much weight as prowess with the keeping gloves.
#5 Ken Wadsworth
Ken Wadsworth was a cricketer considered to be way ahead of his time. Aside from being a gloveman who kept improving with each passing game, he was also a batsman capable of calibrating his strategy according to the situation. Debuting at the de facto home of cricket, Lord's, in 1969, he enjoyed a seven-year career at the highest level.
Be it Hedley Howarth's nagging left-arm spin or Dick Motz's express pace, Wadsworth was at ease behind the stumps. Not many would know that he was the first wicket-keeper batsman to score a century in ODIs. Were it not for a fatal bout of Melanoma, he could have added plenty more to his 33 Test caps.