Chris Cairns' career may have been a glass half-empty but even so it contained enough substance to make him a world-class cricketer and worthy of being called a 'great' of the game.
As expected, the eulogies have flowed since he announced his retirement from all international cricket. One writer suggestedthat while Cairns on song made the Black Caps' losses a little more bearable, he never really achieved anything of major significance. Did Cairns under- or overachieve? He most certainly underachieved but reaching world-class status in a career littered with injury is a massive mark of respect.
Chris Cairns debuted in 1989 just as the glory years had begun
to tumble. He entered the international stage as a tearaway fast bowler and left 16 years later, having helped rebuild a disastrous team of the early- and mid-90s - the 1992 World Cup aside - into a team that equalled and surpassed many of the history-making feats of his 80s idols.
In his farewell speech he said that "going where no one had gone before" was a major motivation and memory. First test series victory in England, first major tournament win [Champions Trophy 2000], world record ODI run chase - he was there and playing a major part.
But what really illustrates Cairns' part in New Zealand cricket is that the team matured as he matured - such was his leadership quality.
By the late 90s and early 2000s, he was the spiritual leader of the team, dragging himself and others to be better than before.
Cairns' statistics in tests places him in a group with Sir Richard Hadlee, Sir Garfield Sobers, Ian Botham, Imran Khan and Kapil Dev. In ODIs he was only 50 runs short of a club consisting of only Jacques Kallis and Sanath Jayasuriya.
But he achieved the statistics of the game's "allrounder" legends, playing close to only half of the test matches available to him. In ODIs his injury absences were only marginally less dramatic.
Imagine what he might have achieved had he not been so frustratingly injured. But, then again, why bother when you can appreciate just what he did achieve?
In a small country dominated by rugby, New Zealand cricket is unlikely to ever be 'The Champ' but it punches above its weight and Chris Cairns was one of our heavyweights.
