New Zealand left arm spin wizard Daniel Vettori has said on Friday that he was pretty much delighted at the prospect of becoming the first New Zealander to take 300 One-Day International (ODI) wickets, but his team’s success at the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 meant more than individual records.
Vettori has taken 298 ODI wickets with his left-arm spin and should have the opportunity to join the elite 300 club when the Black Caps play Afghanistan in Napier on SundayEleven players, none of them New Zealanders, have reached the milestone, including all-time leader Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan (534) and Wasim Akram of Pakistan (502), the only two men to have broken through the 500-wicket barrier.
Vettori, who has taken eight wickets so far at the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, admitted he had given little thought to his one-day figures after a lengthy battle with back injury that threatened to end his career.
Instead, he said he was focused on his Test figures — he has 362 wickets and 4,531 runs and had hoped to eventually become the second player behind the great Kapil Dev to achieve the double of 400 Test wickets and 4,000 runs.
That now looks unlikely for Vettori, who is 36 and in the twilight of his career, but he said the Black Caps’ strong run as World Cup co-hosts was inspiration enough.
The former New Zealand skipper, who made his ODI debut in 1997, won plaudits when he came on against Australia last week and slowed their scoring dramatically, helping New Zealand to a nail-biting one-wicket win.
Vettori was full of praise for the raucous support home fans have given the Black Caps, particularly during victories over England in Wellington and Australia in Auckland.