Matt Henry - New Zealand - Bowler

A bustling pacer, who often sets the speed gun on fire, Matt Henry, has been trumpeted in the same breath as Shane Bond was when the latter burst onto the international stage. The comparisons do not end there. Henry too is prone to injuries, so much so that his career did not take off until an acute back surgery in 2012. The Canterbury speed merchant enjoyed a memorable ODI debut, snaring 4-38 to cap New Zealand's series win over India.

A few months later, Henry was snapped up by Chennai in the 2014 Indian T20 League auctions. Despite not being picked in the final squad of 15 for 2015 Cricket World Cup, he was selected as a replacement for Adam Milne in the semi-final match against South Africa and was also a part of the team in the final against Australia. Since then, Henry has featured predominantly in New Zealand's squad across formats.

Although Henry has been in the Kiwi setup in the formats, he has been most effective in white-ball cricket. Over the years, he has become a potent weapon for New Zealand although injuries have plagued his career at times. The 2016 Chappell-Hadlee series win at home saw Henry in full flow although the return series towards the end of that year saw him get some stick Down Under. However, he has produced quite a few impactful spells in the shorter formats.

Henry is touted as a fine talent and his ability to generate seam movement at good pace makes him stand apart from the other New Zealand fast bowlers who are more reliant on swing than movement off the pitch. Injuries have meant that Henry has had to reduce his speeds a touch but he can still bowl a heavy ball and get the ball to move both ways.

By Hariprasad Sadanandan