Tom Latham

Over the last few years, Tom Latham has become a stand-in captain for the New Zealand cricket team whenever Kane Williamson is out of the side due to injury. While Latham has played primarily as an opener for New Zealand in Tests, in limited overs cricket he has had a track record of playing across positions.

Since he made his debut for New Zealand, he has made remarkable improvement in his wicketkeeping to now become the primary glovesman for the team. In that role, he lends a lot of balance to the side. He is now a mainstay for the team with the bat — which would have looked improbable at the start considering he had notched up just one score over 50 runs in his first 26 ODI innings.

Notably, Latham was New Zealand’s second highest run scorer in that fateful final of the 2019 Cricket World Cup, where the Black Caps lost on a boundary countback rule.

India holds some special memories for him: it was against the Indian team that he played his first Test in Wellington in February 2014; and scored a memorable knock of 103 not out to help his side chase down a competitive total against India in Mumbai.

Latham was part of New Zealand’s side for the 2015 World Cup. However, he spent all of that campaign — where New Zealand made it the final — on the sidelines without playing a single game.

One-day memory: Tom Latham played one of his best innings against India at Auckland last year. He came in with New Zealand at 88/3 as they chased a target of 307. Then, he smashed an unbeaten 145 from 104 balls to take the side home.

One more thing: Tom is the son of former all-rounder Rod Latham, who played four Tests and 33 One-Day Internationals for New Zealand.