Wellington, Apr.9: Fresh from an outstanding Plunket Shield campaign, in which he took 51 wickets at an average of 18.15 for Otago, South African born left-arm fast bowler Neil Wagner has reaffirmed his desire to play for New Zealand.
The New Zealand Herald quoted Wagner as telling the New Zealand Press Association that he had already rebuffed two approaches to return to South Africa and promised to stand his ground should more offers come his way.
He returns shortly to Pretoria to spend the New Zealand off-season among family and friends while coaching at an academy.
"I have made a commitment and I want to represent New Zealand," he said from Dunedin. It would be a massive honour and privilege for me to represent New Zealand,” he said.
Those words will be warmly welcomed at New Zealand Cricket headquarters where the hunt is on for quality fast bowlers to help the faltering national side fight above their weight on the international stage.
Wagner, 25, has shown more than enough in three seasons with Otago that he has the goods.
He has taken 100 wickets for the province at 26.73, with domestic opposition finding him a handful due to his lively pace. He regularly tops 140km/h - angle of delivery and a highly useful ability to reverse swing the older ball.
All those attributes represent a challenging package if you are holding a bat 22 yards away.
© ANI
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