Black Caps v Sri Lanka: Henry Shipley raises hand to enter World Cup contention

Henry Shipley tore through the Sri Lankan top order at Eden Park. Photo / Photosport

Henry Shipley is the first Black Cap to catch the eye in a busy period that doubles as an extended audition for World Cup contention.

But after his maiden international five-wicket bag set up a record win in the first ODI against Sri Lanka, the Canterbury bowler said that idea was far from his mind.

Instead, Shipley was still getting his head around simply wearing a black cap. Playing a starring role was as improbable to the 26-year-old as the prospect of elevating his name to the edges of the squad for this year’s showpiece tournament in India.

Shipley, who was this morning also included in the Black Caps’ T20 squad for their forthcoming series against Sri Lanka and Pakistan, stood out not just for his imposing stature at Eden Park on Saturday.

His opening spell with the new ball essentially decided the match, snaring four of the first five wickets to fall with a line that brought into play the stumps and found the edge of Sri Lankan bats.

By the time he left the bowling crease — denied another wicket on an umpire’s-call lbw review — Shipley had reduced the tourists to 39-5, their chase of 275 in tatters.

Later given the chance to complete his haul, he needed only one over to achieve that milestone, finishing with 5-31 from seven overs as Sri Lanka were dismissed for 76.

That represented the Black Caps’ largest victory by runs over Sri Lanka, and left Shipley shaking his head at what had transpired.

“The performance is still pretty surreal,” he said. “Being able to play in front of a home crowd and hear that roar for the first time when it’s going our way is something that was special and will stick with me for a long time.

“It was just about creating some pressure up top and doing our best to contain them, which after three or four overs started to work.”

Shipley did experience some nerves in his first over, cracked for a couple of boundaries to potentially stir memories of a chastening introduction to international cricket on the subcontinent earlier in the summer.

But Shipley said those three clashes with Pakistan and India were invaluable to his development and, in the absence of the IPL contingent, so will his involvement in what shapes as a crucial six-week stretch for fringe players.

“It was about trying to take as much confidence from it as possible,” Shipley said of his debut in January. “It’s a pretty tough place to go and you don’t win too many in the subcontinent, but the confidence from those difficult conditions was something that I could try to apply out here.

“Soaking it up is pretty important for me, really — just using the next month to gain as much experience as possible will be invaluable.”

Shipley’s next aim is to improve his batting enough to replicate the bowling-allrounder role he plays for Canterbury. If that proves successful, the extra balance he can add may be integral in earning a trip to India, not that Shipley has been considering the possibility.

“Not really, to be honest. I didn’t quite think I’d be playing for New Zealand, so I’m just trying to take it as it comes and see what happens.”

Shipley and opening batsman Chad Bowes will be two potential debutants when the Black Caps play three T20s at home against Sri Lanka before heading to Pakistan for five more.

Tom Latham will captain the side, while Matt Henry, Cole McConchie, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Seifert and Will Young have all been selected in a T20 squad for the first time since 2021.

Black Caps squads for Sri Lanka and Pakistan T20 series:

Tom Latham (c), Chad Bowes, Mark Chapman, Dane Cleaver (PAK only), Matt Henry, Ben Lister, Adam Milne, Cole McConchie (PAK only), Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Seifert (SL only), Henry Shipley, Ish Sodhi, Blair Tickner (PAK only), Will Young.