Henry’s stunning English summer
Matt Henry is winging his way home to New Zealand after a remarkable half-season stint in England.
The 26-year-old New Zealand seamer took 65 wickets in all competitions, including 49 wickets in just six County Championship matches for Kent.
Henry averaged 13.4 with the ball while claiming a scalp every 27.1 deliveries in first class cricket. Nearly a quarter of his overs resulted in maidens.
For a player who played just 12 times during the recent New
Zealand summer – a victim of being good enough for international cricket but stuck behind Trent Boult and Tim Southee in the pecking order – sitting on the sidelines can be frustrating.
But in England he showed his class, taking four five-wicket hauls in 12 innings, while also claiming 10 wickets for the match on two occasions.
Henry simply enjoyed playing. The results have been a bonus.
‘‘It’s been a crazy little period,’’ Henry said of his time with Kent. ‘‘I don’t think you ever expect stuff like that.
‘‘It’s obviously really nice to hear those numbers but at the end of the day the main thing is we’re playing winning cricket.’’
During the recent New Zealand summer, Henry played just 12 games in total, including one test match and three ODIs for New Zealand. In total, he bowled only 150.4 overs in match situations over that period.
Henry’s UK season has been a different story. He bowled 221.4 overs in the County Championship alone, to go with 99.1 overs in the Royal London One-Day Cup, helping Kent to the final at Lords.
Kent lost the final to Hampshire on Sunday by 61 runs, but Henry ended tied second on the wicket taking charts at 16.
Henry said the lack of game time in New Zealand was a key factor in him seeking some time in England, and New Zealand Cricket high performance manager Bob Carter was the man who helped secure his gig with Kent.
‘‘[It’s] just actually having that time in the middle,’’ Henry said.
‘‘It’s all good and well doing lots of training and bits and pieces, but to come over here and have the opportunity to play cricket with red ball and white ball, it’s been really exciting.’’
The English season is always hectic, so Henry went from playing once in a blue moon to playing every week with little rest.