Shane Bond      

A breath of fresh air since his introduction to Test cricket on the Australian tour of 2001-02, Shane Bond has given New Zealand a rare fast-bowling option. He is among the fastest bowlers in the world, and with his arrival the potency of the attack has increased. The quickest New Zealander to reach 50 one-day international wickets, including a national best of 6 for 22 against Australia in the 2003 World Cup, his potential is only limited by his susceptibility to injury, having suffered crippling stress-fractures in his feet and back. These injuries forced him to miss out on all cricket from May 2003, including a proposed stint with Warwickshire in the English County Championship that year. However, after passing ...

A breath of fresh air since his introduction to Test cricket on the Australian tour of 2001-02, Shane Bond has given New Zealand a rare fast-bowling option. He is among the fastest bowlers in the world, and with his arrival the potency of the attack has increased. The quickest New Zealander to reach 50 one-day international wickets, including a national best of 6 for 22 against Australia in the 2003 World Cup, his potential is only limited by his susceptibility to injury, having suffered crippling stress-fractures in his feet and back. These injuries forced him to miss out on all cricket from May 2003, including a proposed stint with Warwickshire in the English County Championship that year. However, after passing a fitness test, he was picked for the tour of England in 2004, but flew home during the second Test after failing to recover from his back injury. His fast, inswinging yorker commands the respect of the best batsmen in the game - but only when he's fit. He took 13 wickets at 9.23 against Zimbabwe in 2005, including 10 for 99 in the second Test at Bulawayo - his first ten-wicket haul - and in the process became the quickest among all New Zealand bowlers to get to 50 Test wickets, achieving the mark in only his 12th match. Unsurprisingly, he again broke down and was out of the game for another nine months with a knee injury. Another comeback was cut short when back problems kept him out of the first Champions Trophy game in 2006 but he returned again and was destructive in the CB Series in Australia. His sore back surfaced once more in Australia but he overcame it and continued his outstanding form against the world champions. His 5 for 23 in the first game of the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy in February 2007 augured well for Bond's second World Cup. He picked up 13 wickets in the tournament and finished as the most economical bowler. However, frequent injuries interrupted Bond's career and the fast bowler joined the lucrative Indian Cricket League in 2008. The New Zealand board reacted to this move by terminating Bond's national contract although they did not rule out the possibility of his return. After a long period of uncertainty - during which he played for Hampshire and Canterbury - the BCCI offered amnesty to ICL players, and other boards followed lead. Finally, in September 2009 he wore New Zealand colours again, in a Twenty20 against Sri Lanka in Colombo. He worked his way back into the Test squad and had enough fuel for one final match-winning performance in the Dunedin Test against Pakistan. An abdominal tear ruled him out midway through the series before he decided to quit Tests and focus on limited-overs cricket. In January 2010 he was one of the biggest buys at the third IPL auction in Mumbai, fetching the maximum possible bid of $750,000 from the Kolkata Knight Riders.
Cricinfo staff January 2010

January 20, 1997
Fair first-class debut
• Makes his first-class debut for Canterbury against Central Districts in Rangiora. Takes 2 for 42 in his first bowling effort; his first victim is his future New Zealand team-mate Mathew Sinclair.
  
November 22, 2001
Worst team to debut against
• Enters the Test arena against an imposing Australia, who pile on 8 for 558 dec. in Hobart. Traps Steve Waugh lbw for 0, but finishes with unflattering figures of 1 for 135.
  
January-February, 2002
Shorter format, snappier debut
• Has a more successful ODI debut, with 3 for 53 as New Zealand successfully defend 199. Has Mark Waugh caught behind in his first over. A month later, finishes the VB Series as the leading wicket-taker with 21 at 16.38.
  
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March 11, 2003
Leading attack in World Cup
• Rattles through the Australia top order and finishes with 6 for 23 in a World Cup Super Sixes match, only to see his side lose as Brett Lee is in devastating form, too. Later ends the tournament as New Zealand's leading wicket-taker, with 17 at 17.94.
  
May 11, 2003
Good news before a bad, bad news
• Beats Geoff Allott by one game to become the fastest New Zealander to 50 ODI wickets when he bowls Faisal Iqbal in his 27th ODI - in Dambulla in the Bank Alfalah Cup. Sustains a back injury during the game, leading to major surgery and a two-year lay-off from international cricket.
  
March 19-22, 2005
Recovery on track
• Proves he can be a useful lower-order batsman, striking a first-class century for Canterbury against Northern Districts in Christchurch. Follows his 100 with five wickets for good measure as his recovery continues.
  
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August 15-17, 2005
Back with a bang
• On his first international tour in two years, secures his first 10-wicket haul in a Test, with 6 for 51 and 4 for 48 against a wobbly Zimbabwe in Bulawayo. When he has Brendan Taylor caught behind he reaches 50 wickets in his 12th Test, making him the quickest New Zealander to the mark.
  
August 26, 2005
Back to Bulawayo
• Days later takes 6 for 19 against India, bettering his own best and setting a new record for the best figures in an ODI by a New Zealander. Is a replacement in the match for Nathan Astle, under the now obsolete Supersub rule.
  
March 12-13, 2006
Last-innings heroics
• Stops West Indies securing what looks like a certain victory when he takes 5 for 69 in the final innings of the Auckland Test. His victims include Brian Lara, bowled first ball, and New Zealand win by 27 runs. Chasing 291 West Indies are 1 for 157 at one stage, before he strikes.
  
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April, 2006
Injury returns
• Is forced home from the tour of South Africa with a knee injury that keeps him out of action for several months.
  
January 14, 2007
Power of three
• Removes Cameron White, Andrew Symonds and Nathan Bracken in the 50th over in Hobart to become the second New Zealand bowler to take an ODI hat-trick.
  
January 23, 2007
Sprints to 100
• With Monty Panesar's wicket in Adelaide, his 54th match, becomes the fastest New Zealander to reach 100 ODI wickets and the second fastest of all time, behind Saqlain Mushtaq.
  
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March-April, 2007
Another World Cup semi-final
• Collects 13 wickets at the World Cup in the West Indies as New Zealand reach a semi-final, but has an off day as Sri Lanka knock them out. Takes 1 for 59 in his 10 overs.
  
September 10, 2007
Is selected in ICC's ODI Team of the Year
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November 10, 2007
Injury revisits
• Breaks down during the Wanderers Test, and is ruled out of the rest of the tour of South Africa. The abdominal tear doesn't heal in time for next month's Chappell-Hadlee series either.
  
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January 6, 2008
A league of his own
• After continuous speculation, the Indian Cricket League (ICL) confirms that Bond had joined the league. Twenty days later, NZC terminate his New Zealand contract. Says he joined ICL to secure his and his family's future.
  
April 16, 2008
Pariah can play
• Banned from all official cricket, and after a long tussle and period of uncertainty, finally makes his Hampshire debut, takes seven Sussex wickets for 66 on the first day, his best figures in first-class cricket..
  
July 7, 2009
Some way back
• Although he has played for Canterbury in the domestic season, there has till now been no way back for him to New Zealand back. Then comes the BCCI's amnesty scheme, welcoming back players who sever ties with ICL. Turns out NZC is eager to have him back, giving him a national contract right away, and on this day selecting him for the ODI leg of the tour of Sri Lanka.
  
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September 2, 2009
We've been expecting you
• Finally gets to wear a New Zealand cap again, in a Twenty20 against Sri Lanka in Colombo. Is hit for four boundaries in his first over back, but goes for just 11 in his next three as New Zealand win by three runs.
  
November 24-28, 2009
Lethal in whites
• In his first Test in more than two years, bowls New Zealand to victory against Pakistan, taking 5 for 107 and 3 for 46. Rolls back the years with consistent sharp pace, bouncers, inswing and legcutters. Tears an abdominal muscle by the end of it, and is ruled out for the rest of the series.
  
December 23, 3009
Bye bye, whites
• The dreaded declaration arrives. Announces retirement from Tests: "Unfortunately my body just won't let me continue to play at that level, given the workload and demands of Test cricket." With 87 wickets from just 18 Tests to his name, he is the biggest loss of our times.
  
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3 for 53 v Australia, Melbourne, 2001-02
• After an inauspicious Test debut in Hobart, few could have predicted Bond would soon become arguably the bowler most feared by Australian batsmen. The first indications come in his ODI debut that same summer. Defending a modest 199 in the opening match of the VB Series, New Zealand have their work cut out. But Bond has Mark Waugh caught behind in the first over, and then removes Ricky Ponting and Michael Bevan to set up an unlikely win and begin his happy rivalry with the world champions.
  
6 for 23 v Australia, Port Elizabeth, 2003
• Australia have a formidable record entering this World Cup Super Sixes game - seven matches at the tournament for seven wins. But Bond knows a thing or two about his opponents, with 16 wickets at 12.93 from his five previous outings against them. New Zealand decide to bowl and Bond sends the top order packing, before claiming three more victims in his second spell. He finishes with the best figures by a New Zealander in an ODI, but his team-mates crumble and they lose by 96 runs.
  
6 for 51 and 4 for 48 v Zimbabwe, Bulawayo, 2005-06
• Nobody is quite sure what to expect from Bond in his first series for more than two years. Would he ever be the same after a major back surgery? He is hardly required in the first Test against Zimbabwe as the hosts capitulate twice, but in the second match he reignites his awesome firepower. Zimbabwe's top order have no idea and the middle order even less, and at one stage in the first innings Bond has 5 for 11. Match figures of 10 for 99 - he has never before taken 10 wickets in a first-class game - secure an innings victory.
  
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6 for 19 v India, Bulawayo, 2005-06
• Less than a fortnight after his Test 10-for and at the same venue, Bond confirms he really is back. He betters his ODI best with 6 for 19 against India and his victims included the handy trio of Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and Virender Sehwag. His searching opening spell leaves India at 44 for 8, chasing 216. A superb rearguard action follows, and just when it looks like JP Yadav and Irfan Pathan might steal the game, Bond returns to break the partnership and ensure his blistering start is not wasted.
  
2 for 57 and 5 for 69 v West Indies, Auckland, 2005-06
• With Chris Gayle and Daren Ganga's opening partnership still intact and 148 on the board, West Indies appear to be cruising towards a win in in the Auckland Test. It is the fourth day and they need 291 to win, but when Nathan Astle breaks the partnership Bond steps in. First he forces Ramnaresh Sarwan to retire-hurt with a brutal bouncer that crashes into his helmet. With the next ball Bond rattles Brian Lara's off stump. After a rest, Bond returns with three wickets in three overs, sealing the 27-run win with an off-cutter that bowls the No. 11 Jerome Taylor.
  
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