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Matt Henry celebrates after taking the wicket of England’s Ollie Pope on day one of the second test at the Basin.
First cricket test: Black Caps v Sri Lanka. Where: Hagley Oval, Christchurch. When: 11am Thursday, March 9 (day one of five). Coverage: Live on Spark Sport and Today FM, live updates on Stuff from 10.30am.
Matt Henry thought his test was over after his back seized up on his follow-through on an epic final day at the Basin Reserve.
Henry looked distraught as he trudged to the dressing room, fearing New Zealand’s already shorthanded bowling lineup might be a bowler down, chasing a series-levelling win against England.
Thankfully for Henry and the Black Caps, their short-term physio Theo Kapakoulakis, who was filling in for Brett Harrop during the England series, worked his magic to get him back out there.
Henry returned after the lunch break and captured the wicket of Stuart Broad as New Zealand pulled off a stunning one-run win to level the series – in one of the greatest tests of all-time.
“Yeah I was a little bit worried. Thankfully we managed to keep standing up and get out there for that next [session] and we got through it. It was fine and it ended up being a pretty exciting test match to be a part of,” Henry said.
“[Kapakoulakis was the] secret man, the physio. Yeah, all credit has to go to him.”
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Matt Henry leaves the field with back spasms on day five of the second test against England.
The Black Caps have quickly parked the euphoria of the ‘Miracle at the Basin’, turning their focus to a two-match test series against Sri Lanka, starting at Christchurch’s Hagley Oval on Thursday.
Sri Lanka don’t have a flash test record in New Zealand conditions, winning just two matches on these shores – the last coming in Wellington in December 2006 when greats Kumar Sangakkara, Muttiah Muralitharan, and Mahela Jayawardene were in their side.
They do sit third in the World Test Championship standings with five wins, four losses, and a draw in this cycle.
A typical Hagley green seamer is set to greet the sides and whichever captain calls correctly will no doubt opt to bowl first. That’s the opposite of then South African captain Dean Elgar who bucked the trend and bravely elected to bat first against New Zealand last February, which paid dividends winning the test.
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New Zealand’s Matt Henry receives attention for his back injury on day five of the second test against England.
Despite its green day one appearance, Hagley always has plenty in it for both the batters and bowlers as the test goes on, usually producing plenty of runs on days two and three.
Henry will be grinning widely if captain Tim Southee wins the toss and puts Sri Lanka in on day one. In the opening test against South Africa at Hagley last February, he had a match to savour, capturing 9-55 for the match and 7-23 in the first innings.
“You would expect it to hopefully have some bounce in it. Traditionally there’s a bit of assistance, especially on day one here,” Henry said.
“Traditionally it’s also a good wicket as well. We know we will have to be accurate and bowl well, but there’s still plenty of runs out there as well.”
Andrew Cornaga/Photosport
Matt Henry is mobbed by team-mates in the first test against South Africa at Hagley last summer, after taking another wicket.
New Zealand hadn’t settled on their playing XI at Wednesday’s media session, but Blair Tickner looks poised to return after missing the second test against England in a four-pronged pace attack. Tickner will likely replace Will Young, who failed to fire with the bat at the Basin, or possibly Michael Bracewell.
This will be a special test for Henry, who will be playing his first match at his Hagley Oval home in front of baby daughter Annabelle. Wife Holly and Annabelle planned to attend and he said it would be a proud moment having her at the ground.
With Trent Boult handing in his national contract last year and not being picked for the test side, combined with Kyle Jamieson’s back issues, Henry has quickly become a pivotal cog in the New Zealand test side.
Having made his test debut in 2015 against England, this will be just his 20th test, capturing 61 wickets at 39.91.
Black Caps bowling coach Shane Jurgensen hailed Henry’s contribution to the New Zealand fast bowling group and what he brought at the bowling crease.
“It’s fantastic how he’s come in. His new ball bowling, you could see it last game how he’s a really big threat for opening batters of the opposition or any batters really. His new ball bowling has been a strength of his for a long time,” Jurgensen said.
“He’s done that through white ball cricket and 50-overs for the World Cup and to now bring that to the test arena has been fantastic.”
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