The Baby Faced Assassin - Mike Hesson, NZC Coach.

While all the plaudits are going to the players and the captain, and rightfully so, one man has stood back and engineered those plaudits.  A Geek Boy to look at and listen to, Mike Hesson is far from that.  When appointed NZ Cricket coach in 2012 after the unsuccessful yet much publicised reign of NZ great John Wright, everyone was left standing aghast.  Mike Who??  The media soon stood up though when this softly spoken man announced that there were changes afoot, and one not so popular at the time.  But he had a mission.  And he was going to do it his way.  The fallout was loud, long and potentially calamitous for New Zealand cricket going forward, but he stuck to his guns, still quietly spoken, and got on with his vision.

So what has Mike Hesson achieved in two and a half years?  Sure results are on the board and now the public is back in the fold.  A team to follow and admire.  But how have those results come about?  In 2012, the cupboard was bare and there had to be changes made.  Some players just weren't performing, and key players weren't performing to potential.  Yet two and a half years downtrack, the core base of that 2012 team is still playing.  Hesson didn't go out and axe, cut and thrust, he parried.  He started getting the players to believe in their abilities and fostered improvement.  The results are a testament to that improvement.  Hesson has fashioned a record unenviable in New Zealand Cricket, and one that probably will never be matched or bettered.  Yes he is blessed to have the talent at the right time, but the talent are also blessed to have a mentor that not only believes in them, but drives them to greater things.

Below I have compiled a synopsis of core players performances from the Pre Hesson days and still performing.  Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Brendon McCullum, BJ Watling, Tim Southee, and Trent Boult are all core players that have been in the team for some time, so their performance indicators make interesting reading.

Kane Williamson
Career Average  45.7
Pre Hesson  32.6
Post Hesson  56.5

Ross Taylor (this is surprising giving the circumstances surrounding the captaincy loss)
Career Average  44.9
Pre Hesson  42.4
Post Hesson  51.3

Brendon McCullum (I have only counted his pre Hesson roles as higher order batsmen, not WK batsman.)
Career Average  38.7
Pre Hesson  40.9
Post Hesson  47.4

BJ Watling (only played a few games before Hesson)
Career Average  40.7
Pre Hesson  32.7
Post Hesson  46.0

Tim Southee
Career Average 31.6
Pre Hesson  42.9
Post Hesson  26.8
Pre Hesson averaged 1.5 wickets per innings. Post Hesson up to 2.2 wickets per innings.

Trent Boult
Career Average  27.1
Pre Hesson  35.4
Post Hesson  25.3
Pre Hesson averaged 1.5 wickets per innings. Post Hesson up to 2.2 wickets per innings.

The marked improvement of these core players is testament not only to the team and captain, but a coach that has come along with a plan and stuck with that plan. And the players, the administrators, and now the public are also buying into it.  The coach change in 2012 brought about a change in fortunes for NZ cricket, and long may that reign.