2008: New Zealand's year in review

2008 was a year of much frustration and disappointment for New Zealand cricket, and will be mostly remembered for the defections of various big names to the Indian cricket leagues. Try as they might, the kiwis will not be able escape the shadow cast by the departures of Shane Bond and Stephen Fleming for a long time. By the end of the year, their decline as a test side was complete, falling to eighth in the rankings. Also noteworthy was the premature departure of John Bracewell as coach, though few will argue he overstayed his welcome. In spite of all this, the kiwis remain a consistent limited overs side (in the 50-over version at least), and the continued development of a core group of youngsters offers hope that within two or three years, they will emerge as a competitive unit.


High Points: There weren't many, so it's hard to look beyond the victory over England at Hamilton where Ross Taylor's coming-of-age century and Kyle Mills' four wicket haul were standout performances. It should have been the catalyst for at least one more test win over England in 2008, but opportunities were squandered. Apart from this, the explosive top order batting of Brendon McCullum and Jesse Ryder during the one-day leg of the same tour is worth a mention. So too the fightback to clinch the return one-day series 3-1 in England.

Low Points: Without a doubt, the surrender of a 179-run-lead at Manchester when the batsmen collapsed to Monty Panesar's spin and the bowlers subsequently failed to defend 290-odd on a turning pitch. The other batting collapse which summed up New Zealand's year was in the series decider at Napier, when Ryan Sidebottom ripped through the side following some brief heroics from Stephen Fleming, in his final test.

Biggest success: It came as a huge relief throughout the year that captaincy has not affected Daniel Vettori's game one bit. As a bowler, he was a threat in all forms of the game while he was as effective as ever with his lower order batting, also leading the way with the bat in the victory over Bangladesh at Chittagong. Has shown wonderful composure as a captain, in the face of much criticism and a weak lineup at his disposal. He will be closing in on the allrounder's test double of 3000 runs and 300 wickets.

Biggest disappointment: John Bracewell's reign as coach ended rather appropriately as NZ finished (almost) bottom of the test rankings. In many ways, Braces' tenure was comparable with that of president George.W.Bush - both proud men with the best intentions in their positions of power, but hopelessly misguided and prone to talking through their hats. Also worth remembering (or forgetting) was the failure of Mathew Sinclair, whose tortured test career looks to have run its course.

Biggest turnaround: Iain O'Brien - no debate here. He was the subject of much ridicule following his selection for the England tour, but has since graduated to an automatic selection in the test side, one of the captain's most trusted men, and near-acclaimed blogger. The figures don't lie either; by the end of the year, his wickets tally was 38 at 21 apiece.

Biggest Underachiever: After the back-to-back series against England, Jamie How appeared to have cemented his place as a solid and dependable test opener, only needing to convert his starts into bigger scores. Since then the runs have completely dried up, though he may have saved his skin with a half century in the last test at Napier. The opening positions remain far from settled.

Rookie of the year: Despite notable performances from Tim Southee, Jesse Ryder and Tim McIntosh, the efforts of Daniel Flynn in the middle order and then at number three were the most encouraging, and bode extremely well for NZ's future. A few people felt he had been rushed in too early, but his recovery from being knocked over by James Anderson at Old Trafford and his refusal to flinch against pace show that he belongs at the test level.

Fading stars: Scott Styris quit test cricket in a bid to extend his limited-overs career, as well as to concentrate on a stint with the IPL. His results in the one-dayers were mixed, with only a couple of matchwinning fifties to show for it. I somehow don't expect him to continue playing beyond 2009. And Chris Martin, who began the year as the pace spearhead but ended it playing for Auckland, is also on the wane. His commitment was never in question, but at 34, he seems to have lost a bit of venom and has long been discarded from the one-day setup.

Most celebrated player: It was a tale of two seasons for Brendon McCullum; during the first half of the year, he had the world at his feet, what with critics hailing him as the new Gilchrist. In the second, especially after the aura of his 158 for the Kolkata Knight Riders had dimmed, he was mostly criticised for his recklessness with the bat. The expectations were unfair, but it is about time he took his game to the next level. In reality, he had a mostly satisfactory year. His keeping was vastly improved, and he showed a willingness to bat anywhere in the order for the team's sake. His efforts with the bat at Nottingham and Adelaide, for example, showed him capable of playing with a great deal of restraint. But until he starts reserving his best performances for the bigger teams, the frustration from supporters will remain.

Most underrated player: A case could be made that Jeetan Patel deserves to be an automatic starter in both the test and one-day formats. It was a familiar story in 2008; his opportunities were limited but he did his job extremely well, wheeling over his off-spinners with a good deal of flight and drift, and surprising the right-handers with the bounce he was able to extract. His five wicket haul against the Windies was a timely reminder of his worth.

Biggest enigma: Stephen Fleming, cliched as it may be. Look no further than his final test for a snapshot of his career. Although the end of his career had an inevitability to it, and it was nice to see him retire at the top of his game, you can't help but wonder....

What 2009 holds: It will be most interesting to see what new coach Andy Moles brings to the table. The test side will face different sorts of challenges in 2009; they play India, Sri lanka and Pakistan after an age, seemingly. The home series against a tough Indian side will be played late in the season, which might neutralise whatever advantages with conditions they might hope to have against the tourists. The Sri lankan tour will be a hard trial by spin. Overall, it looks like another year of struggle ahead. The one day side has a good opportunity to re-assert itself among the elite nations, with a series against Australia and then India coming up. NZ is a developing side, but the players need to show they are able to step up a notch after their initiation has been complete.