Tom Latham

Tom Latham is a wicket-keeper batsman who has established himself as a Test opener for New Zealand. Making 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. Although Latham did not taste any major success in that series, he 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.

Latham made his Test debut against India in 2014 when Ross Taylor made himself unavailable for the series. It was not a great start for him as he got out for a duck in the first innings and scored 29 runs in the second innings. After putting in some consistent performances in the domestic circuit, Tom was called back to the ODI squad. His Test career saw an upward movement in the series against Pakistan as he registered back-to-back centuries.

Since Brendon McCullum retired in 2016, Latham has cemented his place in the Kiwi squad. He played an important role in the series against India which was played in the sub-continent. Tom scored 3 fifties on that tour which showcased him as a good player of spin. In the year 2018, Latham notched up his maiden Test double ton, against Sri Lanka. The wicket-keeper batsman was an integral member of the Black Caps' unit in the 2019 World Cup and made a handy contribution in the final, although in a losing cause.