Tom Latham

Tom Latham
A versatile and flexible player who comes from good cricketing stock in New Zealand, son of Rod Latham. The wicketkeeper has gone onto himself as a surefire member of the Kiwi Test squad since Brendon McCullum and Luke Ronchi called it a day behind the sticks.

Finding his feet in the system

Tom Latham made his first-class debut back in 2010 for Canterbury, he first came into prominence when he struck a magnificent 130 runs off 119 balls against Wellington in 2012 in a List A-game.

It prompted the selectors to romp in this talented lad for the limited-over series against Zimbabwe at home, where he made his ODI debut. He then toured the sub-continent with the New Zealand A team playing List A games against India A and Sri Lanka A in the later part of 2013.

His stand-out innings of 86 against Sri Lanka in November in the second ODI saw his team chase a huge total in a rain-affected game. That performance also earned him the Man of the Match award and showed the world that he was ready for the hard grind of international cricket.

Becoming a core batter for the Kiwis

Tom Latham became renowned for being capable of playing marathon innings, thanks to his strong and airtight technique as well as his ability to keep the scoreline ticking along. He became the first Kiwi cricketer to carry his bat in an ODI innings, remaining not-out in a match against India in Dharamsala.

He was also the second Kiwi batter to carry his bat in a Test innings as he scored 264* against Sri Lanka in 2018.

Despite his talents as an opener, Latham has often been used as a middle order batter, especially in subcontinental conditions. Latham is seen as one of the finest non-subcontinental players against spin in his generation, thanks to his quick feet and good reading of the pitch.

Tom Latham is also a reliable wicketkeeper when called upon, and shares the standard of most dismissals made by a gloveman in a single World Cup campaign. He had 21 catches in the 2019 World Cup in England, keeping wicket to the likes of Tim Southee and Trent Boult, which is tied alongside Adam Gilchrist for the most in a World Cup.

Captaincy for New Zealand

Latham has gone on to become one of the most reliable players for the Black Caps, often chosen as a step-in captain when Kane Williamson was unavailable for the team.

His consistency and availability in recent years has also seen him given permanent captaincy of the New Zealand Test team, after Tim Southee withdrew from the position after a brief spell in charge.

Latham’s grinding and combative style means that while he doesn’t have phenomenal numbers upon first look at his statsheet, a very respectable average of 39 in Tests and 35 in ODIs combined with 20 centuries across the two formats means he is the sort of opener any middle order batter would love to have batting before and with them.