Black Caps go retro as beige makes return

Former Black Cap Hamish Marshall was part of the team that took on Australia in the beige uniform in 2005. Photo / Getty Images

New Zealand Cricket will tap into their retro chic roots this summer by adorning the Black Caps in beige for Twenty20 internationals.

The colour which captivated the country's cricket faithful through the 1980s, and briefly with the first T20 international in 2005, will return. Clothing sponsors Canterbury are designing the new shirts, believed to have black rather than the traditional chocolate side panelling.

New Zealand will play five T20 matches in January - two against Sri Lanka and three against Pakistan - to prepare for the World T20 in India during March and April. If the uniform is deemed a success, it could get a run on the global stage.

NZC could not be reached for comment but the motives are believed to involve tapping into the wave of fans who emerged to support the team during the national side's campaign towards securing an inaugural appearance in a World Cup final.

It's hoped the uniform will also help NZC reconcile with tragics drawn to the game when the strip debuted during the 1980-81 one-day international series in Australia.

The uniform has since been a backdrop to memorable moments like the underarm incident against Australia in 1981 and Lance Cairns' six sixes in 1983, including a one-hander over square leg using his shoulder-less Excalibur bat. Both instances occurred at the MCG.

A Herald on Sunday nostalgia story in January said the cut "veered away from the traditional loose fitting flannel to something a bit tighter, something a bit more '70s zeitgeist".

Former opening batsman Bruce Edgar, who played in the beige debut, said it helped capture the public's imagination.

"You [went] to a traditional cricket ground and all of a sudden there was a bunch of people there in strange clothing. Like a bunch of aliens had arrived."