Who is Kristian Clarke, the New Zealand seamer with a List A hundred debuting in the first ODI vs India?
New Zealand pacer Kristian Clarke is making his ODI debut against India today (January 11).
On the eve of the first ODI, New Zealand captain Michael Bracewell told Vadodara reporters during his pre-match press conference that, “We’re still working through the last of our (playing) XI, but I can confirm that Kristian Clarke is making his debut tomorrow (Sunday), so it’s an exciting chance for him. We’re really excited about how he’s been bowling in domestic cricket in New Zealand and also in the build-up over here.”
Bracewell added that the Black Caps would be leaning on the experience of Kyle Jamieson to lead the attack.
New Zealand playing XI for first ODI vs India: Devon Conway, Henry Nicholls, Will Young, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Hay, Michael Bracewell (c), Zak Foulkes, Kristian Clarke, Kyle Jamieson, Adithya Ashok.
Who is Kristian Clarke?
Just about two months shy of his 25th birthday, Clarke is a seam bowler from the Waikato region of New Zealand, just south of Auckland. Aged 16, he was picked to represent Northern Districts in New Zealand’s U19 National Championship, where he had a quiet outing with four wickets at an average of over 35.
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A breakout season came in 2018-19, when playing for Hamilton Boys High School, Clarke finished as the joint second-highest wicket-taker in the Gillette Cup, a national-level competition for secondary schoolboys. He followed it up with 12 wickets at the U19 National Championship, before being picked for the Black Caps U19 team in July 2019.
In 2020, Clarke went to the U19 World Cup with New Zealand, in a squad that contained now-senior Black Caps Adithya Ashok, Will O’Rourke and Rhys Mariu. He played all four of New Zealand’s games as they were knocked out by eventual winners Bangladesh in the semi-final, picking up seven wickets at an average of 14.
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His standout performance of the campaign came against West Indies, where he first took 4-25 before walking in at No.10 with his side 153-8, needing another 86 to win. Clarke got the job done alongside Joey Field, scoring an unbeaten 46 off 42 balls.
It would be another two years before he made his first-class debut, turning out for ND against Wellington in March 2022. In November and December the same calendar year, he played the List A and T20 formats for his domestic side. In the longest format, he has taken 79 wickets at 32.9, and has 52 wickets in 34 List A matches. He was also the top wicket-taker in the 2023-24 Ford Trophy, New Zealand’s domestic List A competition.
His usefulness with the bat has also continued – Clarke has a List A century to his name, 100* from No.7 against Central Districts last October. That, however, is his only fifty-plus score in the format. He was called up to New Zealand’s ODI squad against England the same month, and also the Test squad against the West Indies in December after injuries to Matt Henry and Nathan Smith.
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