Tom Blundell

Having made his first class debut for Wellington in 2013, Tom Blundell for long had been waiting to get a call-up for the national side. Though the wait was long, it did come eventually when he replaced an injured Luke Ronchi for the last T20I against Bangladesh in January, 2017. Not just the T20I, he soon was inducted into the ODI squad for the Chappell-Hadlee trophy as well.

It all started for Blundell in 2010 where he shared the dressing room with Tom Latham, James Neesham and Doug Bracwell during the Under-19 World Cup. Most of his peers went on to play for New Zealand and, although much later, Blundell too was lucky to get the New Zealand cap. All this could be possible due to his string of good scores in the domestic circuit, particularly in the Super Smash 2016-17 where he emerged as the highest run-scoring wicketkeeper-batsman with 243 runs.

It was in December 2017 that Blundell finally got a chance in National colors when he replaced an injured BJ Watling for the series against West Indies at home. He made it count with a fine century and looked quite composed in his stay at the crease. Still early days in his career but he does look a fine prospect with his keeping skills and proactive batting skills. The Kiwis definitely have a backup in store in case the likes of Watling or Latham need a breather across formats.

World Cup 2019 - What to expect

Blundell has been selected in New Zealand's squad for World Cup 2019 as a backup wicket-keeper. It's going to be a long tournament, hence Tom Latham might need a break in a couple of games, or if he gets injured. Blundell had a fantastic Test debut as he scored a century in his first innings, hence he would be looking forward for an opportunity even in the 50-over format. Although Tom is yet to make his ODI debut, there would be expectations of him to deliver at the big stage. He might not get many chances but he should be able to perform in the limited number of opportunities that come his way.

Cricbuzz Staff