Emotional award for top commentator
Former New Zealand wicketkeeper turned broadcaster Ian Smith joined some illustrious former team-mates in receiving New Zealand Cricket’s premier award yesterday for outstanding services to the game.
Smith, who led Sky Television’s cricket coverage for two decades and called the pulsating end to the Cricket World Cup final for a global audience in July, was presented with the Bert Sutcliffe Medal by NZC chairman Greg Barclay in a virtual ceremony.
In other awards to kick off NZC’s week of celebrating its high achievers, Wellington duo Sophie Devine and Devon Conway were named women’s and men’s Twenty20 Super Smash players of the year for their roles in the Blaze and Firebirds’ march to the respective titles.
A year after Smith’s former team-mate Ewen Chatfield received a standing ovation in Auckland when presented with the Sutcliffe Medal, NZC had to cancel its annual awards dinner amid the Covid-19 pandemic and switch to an online format to mark the 2019-20 season.
Smith was one of the country’s finest glovemen in 63 tests and 98 one-day internationals, before making a significant impact behind the microphone.
He called many of New Zealand’s greatest cricket moments since the turn of the century and commentated on a whopping 112 tests at home.
‘‘I’m so grateful,’’ Smith said via video call from his Hawke’s Bay home.
‘‘It makes me quite emotional actually to think about joining the list of people who have already won this award.
‘‘The playing aspect was the realisation of a dream. I fondly remember the times keeping to Sir Richard Hadlee, watching Martin Crowe bat sides into submission and all the other guys playing their part as well.
‘‘I’ve loved every minute of calling test cricket. Brendon [McCullum’s] 300 will live forever in my mind; test wins at Lord’s, Hobart, Ross Tayor’s 290, the draw at Eden Park with so much drama against England, and of course the World Cup final at Lord’s last year.’’
Sporting success runs in the Smith family, with son Jarrod representing football’s All Whites to complete a rare New Zealand father and son double across codes.
‘‘I dedicate this award to my wife, Louise. Anyone who’s been involved with touring and cricket will know you have to have a base and Louise has been fantastic the whole time, and has brought up three great sons in Jarrod, Jake and Angus,’’ Smith said.
‘‘I also want to thank my team-mates
throughout my playing career who made it all possible to have the success that I had.
‘‘Also, the people I’ve worked with and, in particular, the people over the past two decades at Sky Television . . . it’s been a great journey and I wouldn’t trade it for a second.’’
Barclay congratulated Smith on being such a great contributor to the game.
‘‘Thanks also for being true to yourself too, you’re a special figure in cricket, you’re held in high esteem throughout the game.’’
Smith joined a distinguished list of former internationals to win the award including Walter Hadlee, Merv Wallace, John R Reid, Graham Dowling, Hadlee and Chatfield.
On the field, Devine and Conway were instrumental in Wellington achieving the rare double as they toppled Auckland’s Hearts and Aces in a memorable finals sweep at the Basin
Reserve in January.
Devine averaged 53 with the bat at a mind-boggling strike rate of 185, and snared 13 wickets with her medium pace at an average of 14.
Conway, a shoo-in for men’s domestic player of the year when it is announced today, plundered 543 runs for the Firebirds at an average of 68 and strike rate of 145.
He was a whopping 140 runs clear of Black Caps and Aces opener Martin Guptill atop the men’s Super Smash runscoring charts.
NZ Cricket will present the remainder of its awards over the next three days, culminating in the Sir Richard Hadlee Medal for player of the year on Friday.