Sir Richard Hadlee says the return of the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy to New Zealand shores will reignite one of sport’s great rivalries — with the BLACKCAPS hosting Australia in a three-match KFC T20I series starting on Wednesday.
The trophy, first contested in 2004, will be decided at Bay Oval this week as the ground is rechristened Beige Oval to commemorate 20 years of men’s T20 international cricket.
“It's a tremendous honour to have the trophy in my family name and it’s great to hear the players players still really value it,” said Hadlee.
“In any sport between New Zealand and Australia, the rivalry is always there and it’s certainly the case for cricket given the storied history between the sides.
“We’ve always been a slightly underrated team and we’ve got to lift our game to have the better of the bigger brother."
Australia have had the upper hand across formats in recent years, but Hadlee believes the modern BLACKCAPS can take them on.
“The message for Michael Bracewell and the team to play with no fear.
“There should be no fear anymore against Australia — that sort of thing is gone and to be the best you’ve got to beat the best."
Sir Richard Hadlee said the renaming of Bay Oval to Beige Oval recalls an iconic chapter of New Zealand cricket.
“It should be exciting — a bit of retro, going back to the late 70s and early 80s.
“The sight of Geoff Howarth leading the team onto the field in beige is something I’ll never forget.
“Sometimes you’ve got to forget about history and think about the present and the future — but it’s going to be fun.”
The series will be broadcast live and free-to-air in New Zealand on TVNZ+ and TVNZ 1, with Sport Nation and the Alternative Commentary Collective providing audio commentary.
Tickets for the three-game series are selling fast with fans encouraged to purchase their tickets in advance to avoid missing out.
