Taylor-Made would have been the order of the day in yesterday's one-day international cricket match in Napier.
And to a certain degree it was if you were Ross Taylor, but just don't tell Hawke's Bay Today photographer Paul Taylor that.
While Black Caps vice-captain Ross Taylor was having a field day with catches yesterday, Paul Taylor "caught one" he won't forget in a hurry.
The 45-year-old cameraman was perched marginally off the 6 o'clock position when he was undone by a seam of the ball as he focused to shoot Pakistan batsman Ahmed Shehzad.
As spinner Daniel Vettori rolled his arm on the bowling crease to deliver the last ball of his second over the aggressive right-handed opener struck a lusty straight shot over the Kiwi skipper's head for six, which unfortunately caught Taylor flush on his forehead.
"I [expletive] felt that," the photojournalist said in a text message shortly after as the white ball left a 5cm gash on his scone despite a floppy white hat absorbing some of the impact.
"I saw it coming but didn't know where it was exactly heading," the Englishman from Taradale said, his eye glued to a camera sporting a 15kg zoom lens.
Incidentally, former New Zealand international fast bowler Shane Bond was standing next to him to gauge the bowlers' line.
Explained Taylor: "Bondy said, 'I'll get that', as the ball hurtled towards me.
"And then he just pulled his hand out of the way."
The Central Districts Stags bowling coach immediately apologised to Taylor, saying he couldn't get to the leather meteorite orbiting towards them because Taylor's zoom lens was in the way.
"The sponsors were offering a $250 catch today, so do I get $500 for a superb header then?" a smarting Taylor asked facetiously.
Typically in a photojournalism vein, he was relieved the projectile didn't smash his expensive camera or lens.
Not familiar with the batsman's name before the game, Taylor is confident he's unlikely to forget him in a hurry.
"Shehzad," he replied without blinking an eye when asked who the willow whacker was.
Taylor's worst "injury" on duty before that was a "slap across the face" from someone offended with him taking pictures.
For the record, Central Districts Stags player Ross Taylor, despite a cold bat, snaffled three consecutive wicket-taking catches last night in the two-wicket defeat.
A boy reportedly broke his finger trying to catch a Martin Guptill four last night. New Zealand Cricket has warned fans to look out for errant balls in Twenty20 matches.
Power hitting Pakistani leaves mark on lensman
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