India vs New Zealand: Matt Henry’s golden chance to lift his Test career

India vs New Zealand: Matt Henry's golden chance to lift his Test career

With New Zealand left with four pacers in the side minus Tim Southee and Jimmy Neesham, Matt Henry is called up as replacement once again to prove his mettle in Test cricket as fifth one. India are all set to hosts New Zealand for the first Test on September 22 and just then visitors lose out on their two ace bowlers – one due to rib injury (Neesham) and the other due to ankle injury, who is ruled out for the entire series (Southee). This is not the first time Henry has been called as a replacement. It happened in 2015, when Adam Milne suffered an injury during ICC World Cup 2015 ahead of the semi-final and final. Second was when Southee was struck by injury in 2014 just before the Sri Lanka Twenty20 (T20I) series.

He also received his One-Day International (ODI) call due to Hamish Bennett’s injury and that proved to be his way into the Kiwi squad. Henry might not have reached the level of Trent Boult, Southee, Wagner, but he can be reliable when needed. Henry’s pace and bounce showed what he was capable of against India on his ODI debut. His smooth bowling rewarded him with best figures on Test debut against England. He has remained consistent with the speed of his bowling around 140kmph. However, he has been unable to replicate his form of ODIs in Tests and that has kept him out of the squad in the longest format.

Matt Henry’s domestic escalation:

When Henry made his debut in First-Class cricket for Canterbury against Wellington in 2011, he made that chance count, grabbing five wickets, triggering a collapse. His best figures in First-Class cricket remain 5 for 18 against Surrey at an astonishing average of 15.35. In 2013 he also payed a crucial role in taking Canterbury to the final beating Wellington with his figures of 4 for 25 in the Ford Trophy 2012-13. He had four five-wicket hauls in his first 14 First-Class matches. He is equally constructive with the bat and has secured three fifties against Australia, Central District and Northern District. With 895 runs in First-Class cricket at a strike rate of 78.02, Henry showed some glimpses with the bat as well.

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His List-A debut also remained a memorable one as he ended with figures of 4 for 25 with best economy rate then of 3.12 amongst the bowlers in 2011 against Central Districts. His best was against Auckland with figures of 6 for 45 in 2013, making his way to the ODI squad a year later and two years later to the Test squad. Playing at No. 9, Henry is yet to go all guns blazing like First-Class cricket with the bat.

Henry also dons the black attire for Worcestershire in England’s NatWest T20 Blast. Henry has been on and off in T20 cricket, that has provided him with limited games for the national side in this format. His only best figures remain 4 for 43 against Otaga in 2015, despite which he remained out of ICC T20 World Cup 2016. As for the famous Indian domestic T20 league, Indian Premier League (IPL), the likes of Mitchell McClenaghan, Kane Williamson, Corey Anderson, Southee  have been part of, Henry was picked for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in 2014, but never played a game.

Wake up call for Matt Henry in Test cricket:

When you enter the ODI arena and receive wickets in the form of Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Ambati Rayudu and none other than limited-over skipper MS Dhoni, it is priceless indeed. Whitewashing India and achieving third-best ODI figures by a New Zealander, Henry was living a dream with his debut. However, the real challenge lied in the sub-continent, which he did conquer. His four-wicket haul against Pakistan at Sharjah further strengthened his hopes to seal his spot in the national ODI squad. He stamped his authority in the Pakistan series at the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with a bang and ensured he ended it with his best figures in ODI cricket of 5 for 30.

When he was called as replacement for Milne in ICC World Cup 2015 semi-final, he went wicketless. It was in the final he got two crucial wickets of Michael Clarke and David Warner. He has been exceptional in ODI cricket with 2 five-wicket hauls and 4 four-wicket hauls. Considering he enters to bat at No. 9, he has managed to score unbeaten 48 against Pakistan at home. With Martin Guptill, Ross Taylor, Kane Williamson and Brendon McCullum doing their bit at the top, there was hardly any pressure on the right-arm pacer to produce runs.

It was once again opportunity knocking the door for Henry during T20Is. After his poor run in the first three T20Is, it was in Southee’s absence that he held his nerve and got three wickets against Sri Lanka at home. He conceded 44 runs at the end of his spell with disappointing economy rate of 11. His last T20I match he had just a wicket to take away against Pakistan at home.

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Test cricket against England shall forever be etched in his memory as he claimed his first four-wicket haul at the Mecca of cricket, Lord’s in 2015. Against England he grabbed eight wickets at the end of the series. He also scored some useful runs in that series batting low down the order, with some sixes off Stuart Broad’s deliveries. Slowly, his Test stature was diminishing after going wicketless against Australia. Finally, he faded away in thin air. With the rise of Southee, Wagner, Boult, Henry’s name was nowhere to be found. In the recently concluded Test series against Zimbabwe and South Africa, Henry was very much part of the squad but was benched out for all the matches.

New Zealand coach Mike Hesson had once mentioned to ESPNcricinfo.com after the conclusion of practice match against Worcestershire, “Henry is a really good talent,” after he claimed the last three wickets for the national side. Henry’s pace is handy but definitely has not got the edge. With Indian pitches providing some swing, that should provide him some pursuit to rattle the likes of Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara and others.

It all boils down to one thing, either Henry decides to warm the benches, despite being included in the squad or make full use of this golden opportunity in Tests.