Editing Richard Hadlee (section)

==Test career==
[[File:New Zealand Cricket Team after First Win Against England.jpg|thumb|Hadlee and the New Zealand Team after first win Against England, 1978]]
A [[bowling (cricket)|bowling]] [[all-rounder]], in an 86-[[Test cricket|Test]] career he took 431 [[wicket]]s (at the time the world record), and was the first bowler to pass 400 wickets, with an average of 22.29, and made 3124 Test runs at 27.16, including two centuries and 15 fifties.<ref name="Profile"/>

Hadlee is rated by many experts as the greatest exponent of bowling with the new ball. He was the master of (conventional) swing and was the original ''Sultan of Swing''. Hadlee was seen as one of the finest fast bowlers of his time, despite the contemporaneous presence of [[Dennis Lillee]], [[Imran Khan]], [[Andy Roberts (cricketer)|Andy Roberts]], [[Michael Holding]], [[Joel Garner]], [[Kapil Dev]], [[Ian Botham]], [[Wasim Akram]] and [[Malcolm Marshall]] among others.

As one of the four top all rounders of his time, the others being [[Imran Khan]], [[Kapil Dev]] and [[Ian Botham]], Hadlee had the best bowling average of the four, but the lowest batting average.

Born in [[Christchurch]], Hadlee made his [[first-class cricket|first class]] debut for Canterbury in 1971/72 and his Test match debut in 1973 – on both occasions, his first delivery was dispatched to the boundary. Hadlee was an inconsistent performer at Test level for several years; however a breakthrough performance against [[India national cricket team|India]] in 1976 in which he took 11 wickets in a game resulting in a win by New Zealand cemented his place in the side. In 1978, Hadlee helped New Zealand to a historic first win over [[England national cricket team|England]] by taking 6 for 26 in England's second innings, bowling the visitors out for 64 chasing a target of 137.

In 1979/80, New Zealand faced the [[West Indies national cricket team|West Indies]] in a [[West Indian cricket team in New Zealand in 1979–80|home Test series]] at a time when the [[History of the West Indian cricket team#World dominance .281970s.29|West Indies were a formidable world cricket power]]. In the first Test in [[Dunedin]] New Zealand achieved a shock 1-wicket win, helped by Hadlee's 11 wickets in the game. In the second Test, Hadlee scored his maiden Test century, helping [[New Zealand]] draw the Test and win the series 1–0. The result was the start of a 12-year unbeaten home record for [[New Zealand]] in Test match series. Hadlee was appointed a [[Member of the Order of the British Empire]], for services to cricket, in the [[1980 Birthday Honours (New Zealand)|1980 Queen's Birthday Honours]].<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=48214 |date=14 June 1980 |page=41 |supp=3}}</ref>

A [[New Zealand cricket team in England in 1983|tour to England in 1983]] saw New Zealand register their first ever Test win on English soil, at [[Headingley Cricket Ground|Headingley]]. The match was remarkable for Hadlee's match return of 0 for 89, a very unusual occurrence in a New Zealand victory during his career. England eventually won the 4 Test series 3–1; however, Hadlee topped both batting and bowling averages for New Zealand in the series, and took his 200th Test wicket in the final Test at [[Nottingham]]. In the return Test series in New Zealand in 1984, New Zealand completed a remarkable three-day innings victory (including one day lost to rain) over England at Christchurch, in which England were dismissed for less than 100 in both of their innings. The match was also notable for Hadlee's superb all-round performance – he took 8 wickets in the match, and scored a rapid-fire 99 in New Zealand's only innings. These efforts led him to achieve the number 1 ranking in ICC Test Bowling Rankings for the year 1984 (he retained it for the next 4 years, till 1988).
[[File:Ian_Botham_(batting)_and_Richard_Hadlee_(bowling).jpg|alt=|thumb|[[Ian Botham]] and Richard Hadlee, Basin Reserve, February 1978]]
1985/86 was the beginning of a period in which Hadlee developed from a very good fast bowler to a truly great one. In [[New Zealand cricket team in Australia in 1985–86|New Zealand's tour to Australia]], an outstanding all-round performance helped destroy the home team in the first Test at [[Brisbane]], beginning with a personal Test best 9 for 52 in Australia's first innings. A batting effort of 54 (to complement a fine 188 by [[Martin Crowe]]) combined with 6 more wickets in Australia's second innings, helped New Zealand to a crushing innings victory. Hadlee followed this up with 7 wickets in a loss in the second Test, and 11 wickets in a New Zealand victory in the third Test, giving his country their first series win on Australian soil and a personal haul of 33 wickets in 3 Tests. In the first Test of the return series in New Zealand, Hadlee took his 300th Test wicket by trapping Australian captain [[Allan Border]] LBW. The series was eventually won 2-1 by New Zealand by way of a victory in the third Test at Eden Park.

In 1986 Hadlee helped New Zealand to a [[New Zealand cricket team in England in 1986|1–0 series win in England]], their first over that country in England. Hadlee's outstanding personal performance in the second Test at Nottingham (his county 'home') where he took 10 wickets and scored 68 in New Zealand's first innings powered his team to victory. In this Test Hadlee, often a controversial character, added to this side of his reputation when he felled (and hospitalised) England wicketkeeper and Nottinghampshire teammate [[Bruce French (cricketer)|Bruce French]] with a nasty bouncer. During the New Zealand v West Indies Test at Christchurch in March 1987, Hadlee and captain [[Jeremy Coney]] had a disagreement in the dressing room prior to the game. It progressed to not talking to each other on the field, communicating through [[John Wright (cricketer, born 1954)|John Wright]] at mid-on.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominionpost/4712327a27348.html|title=The longest journey begins with but a single step|last=Romanos|first=Joseph|date=1 October 2008|publisher=The Wellingtonian|access-date=21 August 2012|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130223012619/http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominionpost/4712327a27348.html|archive-date=23 February 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://content-www.cricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/339133.html|title=The 30-year catfight|date=March 2008|publisher=ESPNcricinfo|access-date=21 August 2012}}</ref>

In April 1987, [[New Zealand cricket team in Sri Lanka in 1986–87|New Zealand travelled to Sri Lanka]] where Hadlee recorded his second Test century. His 151 not out in the first Test helped New Zealand to save the game; however, the tour was cut short due to a bomb exploding near the New Zealand team's hotel in [[Colombo]]. The [[Central Bus Station Bombing|terrorist bomb]] responsible for killing 113 civilians was planted by the [[Tamil Tigers]] separatist movement and was not thought to be directed at the touring New Zealand cricket team. Nonetheless, the team voted overwhelmingly to return home after that one Test of the scheduled three-Test tour.

Hadlee's appetite for competition against Australia surfaced again in 1987/88, when in the third Test of a [[New Zealand cricket team in Australia in 1987–88|3 match series in Australia]] he captured 10 wickets and nearly inspired New Zealand to an unlikely series-equalling victory. The Test ended with Australia's number eleven batsman [[Michael Whitney]] surviving a torrid last over bowled by an exhausted Hadlee. A wicket in that over would have given New Zealand victory, and Hadlee a world record 374th Test wicket, breaking current holder [[Ian Botham]]'s record. In the following [[English cricket team in New Zealand in 1987–88#England 1987-88|home series against England]], the New Zealand public eagerly anticipated the wicket which would give Hadlee sole possession of the world record. However, Hadlee broke down injured on the first day of the first Test, and was forced to sit out the rest of the series. At an awards dinner at the end of the season, Australian commentator [[Richie Benaud]], upon seeing Hadlee hobble up to the stage on crutches, said later that he thought Hadlee "would never play cricket again."

However, after a successful rehabilitation, the next opportunity for Hadlee to claim the [[List of Test cricket records#Individual records .28bowling.29|Test wicket world record]] was against [[India national cricket team|India]] in India in 1988. After [[New Zealand cricket team in India in 1976–77|touring India in 1976]] Hadlee, plagued by stomach troubles, had decided never to play cricket there again, however the opportunity to make history was too strong a lure to pass up. He duly captured the record, and his 374th Test wicket, in the first Test of the series. In the second Test a [[10 wicket haul]] helped New Zealand to a rare Test win in India, although the series was eventually lost 2–1.

In a [[Indian cricket team in New Zealand in 1989–90#India 1989-90|home series against India in 1989/90]], Hadlee become the first bowler in history to take 400 Test wickets when he dismissed [[Sanjay Manjrekar]] in the second innings of the first Test on his home ground in Christchurch, while a group of Old Boys from his former school sang their school song. Shortly after helping New Zealand to another Test victory over Australia at [[Wellington]] by taking his 100th first class [[5 wicket haul]] in an innings, Hadlee announced that he would be retiring after the upcoming tour to England.

Shortly before the second Test of the [[New Zealand cricket team in England in 1990|England series]] at [[Lord's]], the [[1990 Birthday Honours#New Zealand|1990 Queen's Birthday Honours]] were announced and included Hadlee's appointment as a [[Knight Bachelor]], for services to cricket.<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=52174 |date=16 June 1990 |page=29 |suppl=2}}</ref> Hadlee was not invested with his knighthood until 4 October 1990 after the end of his final Test match on 10 July 1990, although he became Sir Richard upon the publication date of the Honours List. Lt.-Col. Sir Maharajkumar Dr. Vijayananda Gajapathi Raju (better known as the [[Maharajkumar of Vizianagram]] or Vizzy) was the only other person to be knighted for services to cricket while an active Test cricketer, in 1936. Unlike Hadlee however, Vizzy's knighthood was recognised for his administrative efforts, not his services to cricket as a player. ([[Alastair Cook]] was subsequently knighted in 2019 while still a full-time first-class player, but shortly after his final Test match.) Due to most knighted cricketers being batsmen, Hadlee liked to state he was the first bowler to receive a knighthood since Sir [[Francis Drake]].<ref>{{cite web | first=Don | last=Neely |author-link=Don Neely |title=Cricket - Test cricket after 1980 |date=5 September 2013 |url=http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/38313/richard-hadlees-300th-test-wicket |website=Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand |access-date=20 December 2020 }}</ref> Hadlee celebrated the achievement by scoring 86 in New Zealand's first innings and winning the man of the match award. In the final Test of the series, Hadlee ended his Test career by taking 5 wickets in his final bowling performance, and taking a wicket with the final ball of his Test career.

When his father Walter was asked to vote, for the 2000 edition of [[Wisden Cricketers' Almanack|Wisden]], for his choice of the five cricketers of the 20th century, he included Richard, confessing it was "embarrassing ... But there's a job to be done.  I will cite the bare facts."  He had considered [[Dennis Lillee]] for his selection, but found Richard's Test match performance put him marginally ahead.<ref>M Engel (ed), ''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack'' 2000, p 20.</ref>  In total, Richard Hadlee received thirteen votes from the 100 electors, coming the equal tenth as player of the century.