Gavin Larsen - New Zealand - Batsman

Gavin Larsen and the word economical bowling go hand in hand. His accurate medium pacers served New Zealand cricket extremely well during the entire decade in the 90s. With an economy rate of just 3.76, Larsen turned accurate medium pace bowling into an art form.

Larsen shot to fame during the 1992 World Cup. He was part of the famous slow medium bowling quartet of dibbly, dobbly, wibbly and wobbly. The other players in that quartet were Rod Latham, Chris Harris and Willie Watson. Combined with a hint of movement, Larsen was instrumental in building pressure upon the opposition during the middle stages of an ODI match. In the 1992 World Cup, Larsen picked up nine wickets in nine matches at a stupendous economy rate of 3.44.

Larsen took his career best ODI haul of 4/24 against Pakistan at Auckland in 1994. However, it was overshadowed by a brilliant display of fast bowling by Waqar Younis. He picked up 6/30 as the match ended in a tie. Larsen also featured in Test matches but his accurate medium pacers failed to achieve penetration at the highest level. He also captained New Zealand in the Austral-Asia cup held in the UAE in 1994. He bowled well and played some good cameos lower down the order as New Zealand reached the semi-final, where they lost to Pakistan. With the bat though, he shares a first-class record. He was involved in a 341 run partnership with Erwin McSweeny for the fifth wicket for Wellington, which is a record in New Zealand first class cricket.

During an ODI match against India in 1999 at Wellington, he managed to scalp his 100th ODI wicket when he dismissed Sachin Tendulkar. However, he took a rare beating in that match, conceding 56 runs in six overs but the match was abandoned due to rain.

He always reserved his best in the World Cups. During the 1999 World Cup, he once again played a pivotal role in helping New Zealand reach the semi-finals. In eight matches, he picked up six wickets at an economy rate of 3.46. However, towards the fag end of his career, opposition teams began to work him out. The batsmen charged down the track to combat his accuracy and his economy rate suffered a bit.

Larsen announced his retirement in October 1999, much to the disappointment of New Zealand fans. He works as a cricket commentator and is currently employed as the CEO of Cricket Wellington, a club that he had served with distinction during his playing years. Larsen is also part of the organising committee for the 2015 World Cup.

Fun Fact: Gavin Larsen's nickname is the Postman because he always delivered. This point is also mentioned in Danny Morrison's Biography 'Mad As I Wanna Be'.

By Siddharth Vishwanathan