New Zealand in 2015 - The Year in Review

2015 - The year that has beenNew Zealand enjoyed one of their most fruitful years in recent memory as Brendon McCullum led his side to their first-ever World Cup final and set extremely high standards for his teammates with stellar performances. It has been a year when the world has fallen in love with New Zealand's simple, no-frills approach to the game. McCullum's devastating batting has had no bearing on his rather polite and calm demeanour and his entire squad has conducted themselves in a manner befitting the gentleman's sport. The jury is still out on whether Australia's gamesmanship and in-your-face tactics are good for cricket but New Zealand, by concentrating solely on their game alone, have shown that greatness can be achieved with a smile and a pat on the back of your opponent too.

February 20, 2015

The McCullum-Southee Show

If victories in their first two World Cup 2015 fixtures - against Sri Lanka and Scotland - weren't enough, New Zealand gave a glimpse of the brilliance that was to follow in their complete annihilation of England. Tim Southee bagged his best ODI figures of 7 for 33 as England were bundled out for a paltry 123. In response, McCullum displayed a freakish sense of urgency. What followed was a 25-ball knock of 77, 74 of which came in fours and sixes. The chase was completed in the 13th over.

February 28, 2015

Kane seals it with a six

While England were hardly a match for McCullum's men, Michael Clarke-led Australia came with a bigger challenge. However, it was Trent Boult's turn to put in a fabulous effort with the ball. The left-arm pacer finished with figures of 5 for 27 as Australia folded for 151. Only this time, the chase wasn't going to be straightforward. New Zealand were still coasting along at 130 for 5 when mayhem ensued. Mitchell Starc bowled a fiery spell as New Zealand lost four wickets for just 15 runs. Kane Williamson fought a lone battle from one end as Australia looked to win the thriller and establish their title credentials. Southee exited as the ninth wicket and Boult had to play out two deliveries off Pat Cummins before letting Williamson take strike again in the following over. He managed that and Williamson sealed the fixture with a straight-batted six off the first ball on the next over to record a one-wicket victory.

March 24, 2015

World Cup semifinal

For a long time in the tournament, New Zealand's one-wicket win remained the best fixture. Until the semifinal arrived.

Surreal images of Grant Elliott emerging as a hero and giving a crestfallen Dale Steyn a hand to get back on his feet will go down as one of the best sporting moments of cricket ever. The sight of several South African cricketers in tears was heartbreaking for most fans but it was also a new chapter in the history of New Zealand cricket as the four-time semifinalists entered a World Cup final for the first time.

Faf du Plessis (85) and de Villiers (65 not out) set a challenging total of 281, one that would've felt a lot bigger under pressure situation. McCullum blazed away in typical fashion, carting the South African bowlers all over in his 26-ball knock of 59. Well begun, however, was merely half done. Kane Williamson's early fall and Ross Taylor's departure gave South Africa the hope of going all the way. And then, Grant Elliott entered the scene.

The 36-year-old played the knock of his life to keep New Zealand's hope alive and took the fixture till the very last over. With Elliott and Daniel Vettori in the middle, the equation was down to 12 runs to win off the final over. First two balls fetch two runs before Dale Steyn struggles with a hamstring trouble. After a couple of minutes, the feisty pacer gets back on his feet and goes back to his task - of defending 10 runs off the last four deliveries. He dishes out a yorker, only a little wide outside the off-stump, enough for Vettori to guide it behind point for four. What a time to get a boundary. Equation down to six off three. Steyn dishes out a bouncer, Vettori pulls and misses but Elliott has called for a single and completed it. Five of two. After a yorker and a bouncer, Steyn ends up bowling a rank length delivery. Elliott is quick to spot it and gives it an almighty heave. Huge six and New Zealand are through. What a story!

From perennial also-rans to winners of a million hearts

Clinical, brutal and at some level, a much better unit - Australia completed a straightforward victory in the World Cup final. It was one of those days when McCullum's punt of slam-bang didn't work as he was cleaned up for a second-ball duck. Panic and inexperience followed as New Zealand folded for just 183. There were no twists this time as Australia cantered to a seven-wicket win to claim their fifth World Cup title. While Australia's ruthlessness was on full display, New Zealand bowed out as a side brimming with exceptional talent and one that has been capable of winning millions of hearts from all over the world.

June 2, 2015

Test series drawn in England

In an era when teams have been 'Kings at home and Paupers away', New Zealand demonstrated skill and bravado to beat England in their own backyard to draw the Test series. In what has been a phenomenal year with the bat for Kane Williamson, the New Zealand batting star also got his name etched on the prestigious Lord's honours board. New Zealand lost the Lord's Test but bounced back emphatically to record a victory in Leeds.

Run-fests and a glimpse of a talented squad

In a series characterised by massive scores, New Zealand lost 3-2 but got the chance to take stock of their strong squad strength. The likes of Nathan McCullum, Matt Henry, Mitchell McClenaghan got an opportunity to present their case for a permanent spot in the limited-overs side. The series began with England posting a mammoth total of 408, followed by three scores in excess of 300.

November 2015

Trans-Tasman trophy

The Trans-Tasman trophy - a two-match Test series in Australia - came as the biggest challenge for New Zealand since their World Cup heroics. Even as Williamson continued to score centuries, New Zealand were a bit rusty first up as Australia drew first blood with a 208-run victory. New Zealand regained their ground, courtesy a scintillating knock of 290 from Ross Taylor that helped them draw the second Test in Perth, setting up nicely for the first-ever Day-Night Test.

November 17, 2015

A touch of class

New Zealand put a touch of absolute class when they gave Mitchell Johnson, one of the meanest operators in modern-day cricket, a guard-of-honour, led by their skipper McCullum, as the Aussie pacer brought an end to his international career in the second Test in Perth. Johnson was taken aback by New Zealand's gesture and conceded that his opposition made him a tad bit emotional.

November 29, 2015

Day-Night Test and the pink ball experiment

A controversial decision from Nigel Llong, the TV umpire, had a massive repercussion on New Zealand's morale on the field and their grip on the fixture eventually slipped away dramatically.

The Day-Night Test began amid much fanfare as the cricketing world welcoming a revolutionary experiment - both with the Day-Night concept as well as the pink ball. The usual cliche of 'first hour is the most crucial' was replaced by a quintessential last hour under lights. Fortunes and momentum changed in a span of a session as the bowlers found solace the moment the lights were switched on. The swiftly changing fortunes made for a fantastic watch and is reason enough for teams to embrace this innovation more in the future. As for the game, Australia turned things around in a low-scorer fixture, to win by three wickets in a three-day affair.

McCullum's untimely retirement

Brendon McCullum's agility, fitness and batting prowess in 2015 lent great support to the old adage that age was merely a number. At 34, McCullum didn't think twice to throw himself around on the field and was also at the peak of his batting form. Vettori went on to admit that when the players saw McCullum putting in unexpected levels of commitment into his game, it inspired them to do so as well. The New Zealand skipper skipped the tour of Sri Lanka to keep himself fresh for the tour of Australia and a lot of hopes were pinned on him to help his side to glory in the World Twenty20 in 2016. The skipper, however, dropped a bombshell by announcing that he would retire after the home series against Australia in February.

Best Player - Kane WilliamsonBrendon McCullum has enthralled one and all with his big-hitting but Kane Williamson has been the stand out performer this year, recording at an astonishing Test average of 90.15 in 2015. The slight-framed top-order batsman amassed 1172 runs in 16 innings, including a massive double century against Sri Lanka in Wellington.

Worst Player - Luke Ronchi

Picking out the worst player in a squad full of overachievers in 2015 has been an arduous task, even harsh but Luke Ronchi has been the least impactful in a year of success for his side. The attacking wicketkeeper-batsman began 2015 with a bang, smashing a 99-ball knock of 170 against Sri Lanka in January but that was his lone 50-plus score all through the year. He finished the year with a poor tally of 424 runs in 23 innings, averaging just 21.20. The silver lining for Ronchi, though, is that he got the chance to make his Test debut against Australia and scored a half-century. 2016 offers him an opportunity to recover from the lows of the gone-by year.

Promising player - Mitchell Santner

2016 - The Year that will be

The year 2015 has rightfully been termed as the year of Kane Williamson. However, a tougher test awaits him in 2016 as he will have to bear the burden of leading the side after McCullum's retirement. Williamson is currently being considered as one among the best in the world and if his willow continues to do the talking, he will give the likes of Steven Smith and Virat Kohli - both captains - a serious run for their money over a sustained period of time.

It will also be an emotional year for New Zealand fans as one of their favourite son - Brendon McCullum - will bow out in front of the home crowd. The prospect of beating Australia in his final outing for his country will spur him and his teammates on to pose a big challenge for Smith's side.