Meeting my hero: First impressions

Photo by Kim Fraser.
Photo by Kim Fraser.
When Chris Cairns emerged on the New Zealand cricket scene it was never a question of whether he would be the next Lance Cairns.

It was a question of whether he would be the new Richard Hadlee.

Moments after watching the then 17-year-old Cairns steam up and spear in a lightening quick delivery, it was apparent to me the teenager was destined for great things.

It was a balmy night at Cooks Gardens in Wanganui and Cairns junior and Cairns senior had teamed up in a benefit match for Hadlee.

Lance hit the Bell Tower on the full with a massive blow, but it was his son who impressed a budding young cricket fan.

That fan pursued a career in journalism after a 12-year stint in the construction industry, and Cairns went on to forge an impressive test record.

He became the sixth all-rounder to take 200 wickets and score 3000 runs, and in 62 tests he scored 3320 runs at 33.53 and took 218 wickets at 29.40.

Who knows how many nails I whacked in during that time, but it would have been a lot more had I not skived off to watch him play whenever possible.

Eventually, I caught up with the strapping right hander.

He was in the twilight of his cricket career and playing a first-class match for Canterbury, and I was just starting out in the newspaper business and eager to impress.

I had accumulated enough experience to know some of our greatest achievers can be on the insular side and, dare I say it, a bit dull.

Cairns was anything but.

He was articulate, thoughtful, charming and after the interview we sat and chatted in a back room under the Rose Stand at Carisbrook.

He impressed me greatly and I had to hold myself back from saying "See ya later Cairnsy" as I skipped off to the office.

This is some of what appeared in the newspaper the following day:

"When world-class all-rounder Chris Cairns was dropped for the Black Caps tour of South Africa earlier this year, the veteran could have taken two paths - disappear quietly into the relative obscurity of retirement and the family fudge business, or fight his way back into the national team.

"He chose the latter.

"Cairns at the top of his game would be a valuable asset for any team in world cricket.

"Few hit the ball harder than the 35-year-old and, while he has underachieved with the ball at times during his international career, he is still a very handy bowler, relying on subtle changes of pace and bounce to take wickets."

- Otago Daily Times, December 21, 2005

Not the most cheery of appraisals, perhaps, but it was hardly damning.

Or so I thought.

Cairns took umbrage and sat me down for a very different sort of a chat.

He wanted to know why I thought he had underachieved and pointed out his career had been held back by injuries.

He remained courteous but revealed a different side of himself.

The bully emerged and he put me in my place, reminding me how insignificant my comments were in the grander scheme of things.

You only get one opportunity to make a first impression.

Turns out I was wrong about Cairns.

He was not the new Hadlee and I obviously hit a nerve pointing it out.

 

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