In a game, increasingly dominated by batters, any bowler particularly a speedster who shows much heart in every battle that he undertakes is undoubtedly a breath of fresh air.
Perhaps our mind has become so skewed to seeing big hitting with the powerful willow, that when the ball starts talking, it mostly goes to deaf ears.
Well, a modern cricketer who surely got noticed and may I say heard when he took the cherry in has hand was the South African born, New Zealand quick Neil Wagner.
The magic that he created with the ball, making the cherry talk with his left arm quick action deserves every praise. The bouncers interspersed with the outgoing delivery and the lethal yorker kept every batter on his toes.
No wonder this stalwart ended a rather praise-worthy international career with 260 wickets from 64 test matches at an average of 27 and a strike-rate of 52, which was the second highest amongst all New Zealand bowlers, the numero unoposition of this honor going to the sparkling Blackcaps all-rounder, Sir Richard Hadlee.
Wagner was consistent against all oppositions in castling the stumps, with his particular bunnies being England and The West Indies against whom he took 57 and 40 wickets respectively, amassing to nearly 40 percent of his total wicket tally.
His ability to use the new and the old ball was undoubtedly second to none!
Such were his feats particularly with the old ball, that whenever New Zealand were in need of wickets to alter the course of any match, the captain always knew Neil was his guy.
Wagner would mix the bouncers well with his ability to swing the ball both ways, which always kept any batter guessing and unsure of what was coming his way next.
The talent was well sprinkled with the aggressive stares,thrown down the 22-yards, which unquestionably made the opposition feel like a cold day in hell facing up to this stalwart.
Ask England and The West Indies and they would whole-heartedly agree!
Perhaps, this was one of the key reasons, this Kiwi bowling machine ended up fifth on the all-time test wicket chart of New Zealand, holding his own amongst esteemed company of greats like Sir Richard Hadlee, Daniel Vettori, Tim Southee and Trent Boult.
With memories, lessons and moments that have defined his legacy on the pitch, Neil irrefutably has put New Zealand cricket on a pedestal of global respect.
As Wagner calls time on his international career, we wish him all the very best for his future endeavors as he undeniably has left a legacy which could serve as fruitful fodder for the next generation of not only Kiwi but fast bowlers from other countries also to consume, imbibe and grow.
We truly salute this hero who played the game with much heart.
Image source– Cricket.com.au (Twitter/X)
