Riding pretty high on confidence having beaten the English side and that too, on their own home turf albeit in Test match cricket, the team that’s making all the right kind of noises at the moment in world Cricket happens to be New Zealand. Fondly known as the Blackcaps, New Zealand are your typically under the radar, less of hype and more of high octane performance side that have given cricketing world many a sparkling talent. Whether you talk of the great Mark Greatbatch, or Sir Richard Hadlee, or whether you talk of Baz McCullum, Stephen Fleming, Shane Bond, or Kane Williamson- New Zealand are the coveted force of world cricket that believe in the talk-is-cheap and performance solely matters philosophy.
Utterly competitive but eschewing theatrics, a team that believes in sticking for each other and rides high on pure performance, the BlackCaps are a walking enigma in that they are as talented as they are disinterested in generating any hype about themselves. And at the moment they seem to have found amid their ranks a real talent in the fast bowling department which really holds the key in this post Trent Boult and Tim Southee era.
The name is Matt Fisher and if form and performances go his way, then this avid and rising Kiwi could be fishing for some notable wickets against the West Indies.
Ahead of the West Indies series, the New Zealand head selector Gavin Larsen had the following insights to offer on Matt Fisher-
“Matt’s a guy that’s been on our radar now for a good couple of years at least. Such as the life of a fast bowler, there’s not many that don’t experience injuries here and there or even a string of them, and Matt’s been no exception. I’m touching wood as I say this, it’s brilliant that he’s back and fully fit. I think the other bowler that I’d add into that mix would be [allrounder] Kristian Clarke, whose growth has been excellent as well. And again, it’s going to be a marvellous opportunity to have him exposed.”
Facts about Matt Fisher:
- The November 1999 born has played the Under 19 World Cup in 2018
- 16 first class games 60 wickets & 43 List A wickets
- Regarded as one of the fastest bowlers in all of New Zealand
- Has a handy amount of experience playing the Plunkett Shield
- Is hoping to become one of the top rung fast bowlers for his country and a fast bowling mainstay for his BlackCaps team for long
- Can regularly generate speeds of 140 kmph
When New Zealand were touring Zimbabwe back in 2025, in which Matt Fisher did eventually play, he was first up, rather interestingly, called in as net fast bowler. And as of today, he has a real chance of stirring up something fine and interesting in the land of omnipotent fast bowling that is the Caribbean given his fast bowling talent!
