Watch the brilliant and composed innings of New Zealand’s legendary opener John Wright, who scored a valuable 59 runs off 79 balls in 99 minutes, hitting 6 classy boundaries and 1 big six against Pakistan in the 3rd ODI at Auckland on March 11, 1989.
In a crucial match, Wright partnered with Andrew Jones to build a strong opening stand of 94 runs, setting the stage for a competitive total of 249 runs. Although Pakistan chased the target and won by 7 wickets with 9 balls remaining, Wright’s innings stood out as a shining example of vintage Kiwi grit, technique, and timing.
Relive this forgotten gem from the archives and witness the elegance of John Wright in full flow during New Zealand's golden era.
00:00On March 11, 1989, Under the skies of Auckland, John Wright crafted a calm and calculated
00:07knock of 59 runs from 79 balls, spending 99 gritty minutes at the crease, laced with
00:13several elegant boundaries and a towering stick.
00:15John Wright inning was the cornerstone of New Zealand's spirited total of 249.
00:20His opening stand of 94 runs with the ever-reliable Andrew Johns laid a solid platform, igniting
00:27hopes of a Kiwi triumph.
00:29Although Pakistan chased down the target with seven wickets in hand and just nine balls
00:34to spare, it was John Wright vintage display of poise and precision that stole the cricketing
00:39soul of the day, a true masterclass in controlled aggression, one that still echoes in the annals
00:46of audio history.
00:47John Wright, Richard Hadley is with me in the studio just before play starts and Richard,
00:51this man, very keen to get a big score I would imagine.
00:53I'm sure he is because he's had a couple of disappointing games so far or innings and I think if he survives
00:59more than 10 balls, anything after that's a bonus.
01:01It's a beautiful day here in Auckland and the pitch, the prospects for this pitch playing
01:08well are good again Richard.
01:09Well it's the test pitch and a lot of runs are scored, well over a thousand runs and one
01:13would suspect today that 250 is in order but of course Pakistan had that nightmare against
01:18Auckland didn't they when they were bowled out for about 48 so they're going to have a
01:20bit of repeat, I'd say it's very unlikely but quite significant actually I think that New
01:27Zealand are batting first and Pakistan chasing because they've batted first in the fast and
01:30not done the job so perhaps they prefer chasing a target today with their batting line-up.
01:35A big crowd in it, it's far from capacity, here's Imran in the first over to John Wright.
01:39Not exactly on the spot right away from Imran but of course he does angle the ball across
01:47the left-hander, at times he comes from very wide on the crease as he looks to get the
01:52outside edge of the left-hander's bat.
01:54One of the surprises today Peter is Amir Malik still keeping wickets, he had a bit of a disaster
02:02I believe in the last match where you can see there's something like 10 buys and I would
02:06have thought that Yusuf would have come in and kept wickets, of course he came back particularly
02:10well, he's not there and they're fielding wish.
02:14So New Zealand has been put into bat by Pakistan which is the first over Imran Khan bowling.
02:19Still with the red ball for this match.
02:21Downstead, the Pakistan fielding effort at Wellington was abysmal, Imran Khan went public after the
02:33match and said it was one of the worst one-day fielding displays he could remember by a Pakistan
02:37team.
02:38The punishment for the Pakistan side was a solid two-hour session back at the Basin Reserve
02:43on Thursday morning, there was no batting and bowling, it was all fielding.
02:46The Pakistani team knows that they did not exactly cover themselves in glory on Wednesday,
02:51they've worked hard on it since.
02:53Let's see if we can see a better effort in the outfield from Pakistan today.
03:00I must say that the one for Basin Reserve is just a little bit bumpy, a little bit deceptive,
03:13but here at Eden Park, an absolutely magnificent service to play on, and so really we should
03:17see a great spectacle.
03:18But again the atmosphere rather low-key.
03:20Gone are the days where the crowd is sort of here before the beginning of the match,
03:26the ground loosely sold out, or the gates closed, but it'll build up as the game goes on.
03:31We remember back to the Halcyon days of 82-83 when there were the best part of 40,000 people,
03:36and here it's far from that at the moment.
03:39The other opening batsman for New Zealand today is Andrew Jones moving up the order from number 3.
03:49Jones coming in to replace Robert Vance in the openness, Robert Vance the Pelkman today.
03:54Jeff Crowe coming in to be New Zealand playing 11 and he'll bat at number 5.
03:58Jones with two consecutive half centuries so far in the series.
04:02Once not out, once run out.
04:05But he has had experience of opening the batting in one-day internationals before.
04:12He's done the job successfully.
04:15The end of the first over from England, it was a maiden, New Zealand Nampana.
04:22There comes from John Wright, what a good shot.
04:34That was an absolutely marvellous stroke and I'm sure that will make John Wright feel good.
04:40Not a good ball, it was short and wide of off-stump and he fairly cracked it away, a beautiful stroke.
04:45And that's given the crowd something to come out of their traps on already.
04:50And I'm sure, as I say, John Wright, who's been in not very good form lately,
04:53really will feel a lot of confidence as he felt that hit the middle of the bat.
04:58And a single for right.
05:07And this is much more profitable over from New Zealand.
05:11That's in the air.
05:20Through gully.
05:21And a single for right.
05:23To end the over.
05:24Six overs now.
05:25And New Zealand 16 without loss.
05:35And that really should have been stopped.
05:37By our keep.
05:40And the New Zealand batsman get another run.
05:43Didn't he hit that one well though?
05:45I mean, again moving into position.
05:47He barely cracked it away.
05:51Not a good piece of fielding.
05:56Seven overs gone.
06:01Oh, this is a good shot.
06:02He kicked this one out.
06:04It's six runs.
06:05Over mid-wicket.
06:08Shortest bounds.
06:09Readmitted lead.
06:10What a good shot.
06:19He's straying a little down the line of leg.
06:21And John Wright picking it up.
06:24Yes.
06:25He just picked up the line beautifully there.
06:26And actually hit it over mid-wicket.
06:28A straightish mid-wicket.
06:30A really fine shot there from John Wright.
06:32Over to the wood clear.
06:35And John Wright catches in.
06:37This'll be four.
06:41Not a good delivery from Salim Gerfa.
06:44Dropping it short and wide.
06:45And John Wright running a fine catch-off.
06:47And starting to come forward.
06:48But seeing the width wide of the off stump.
06:49And just clipping it between cover point.
06:50And that very wide gully.
06:51And that racing away to the fence before.
06:52Jaffer is in his fifth over now.
06:53He has none for 23.
06:54With Imran having about five at the other end.
06:55None for 14.
06:56Oh, he swung this one away.
06:57He couldn't hit it that well.
06:58But I think he might pick up four.
06:59Yes.
07:00That good car that couldn't catch up with.
07:01Oh, he swung this one away.
07:02He couldn't hit it that well.
07:03But I think he might pick up four.
07:04Yes.
07:05That good car that couldn't catch up with him.
07:06Shortest delivery.
07:07He swung it away mid-wicket-ish.
07:08And reasonably short boundary up there.
07:09The rest of the road.
07:10He's on his fifth over now.
07:11And he has none for 23.
07:12With Imran having about five at the other end.
07:14None for 14.
07:15Oh, he swung this one away.
07:16He couldn't hit it that well.
07:17But I think he might pick up four.
07:18Yes.
07:19That good car that couldn't catch up with him.
07:20Shortest delivery.
07:21He swung it away mid-wicket-ish.
07:22And, reasonably short boundary up there.
07:25But, let's get a look.
07:27He swung it away mid-wicket-ish.
07:32And a reasonably short boundary out there, but didn't he hit it quite as well as he would have hoped, I don't think.
07:38No, he didn't. He got it fairly high up on the bat and really just got over that inner ring, saving the single.
07:44Pitched and almost stopped.
07:50And that's evidence of that as he swung away to square legs, stopping it slightly short.
07:56It wasn't that short, but it was straying down that lead side, and that's what comes from bowling around the wicket.
08:01It was just mentioning, and John Wright just swung him away.
08:07And just short of a length, drifting down, and New Zealand go to 50, 51.
08:19John Wright giving his up for a marvellous shot, 4-1.
08:23Stepping away outside the legs, heading into the Fenton line, off for 4, and John Wright's got 50.
08:29That's his 6th boundary, he's had a 6 as well, he's 52.
08:43Great return to form by the New Zealand captain, that's his 18th half century in one day internationals.
08:49And here's the shot again, stepping away a little bit outside the leg stump.
08:55Slamming it away down through mid, off for 4.
08:57A little neck I think, yes, John Wright got the little neck.
09:11Army attacks the catch.
09:13And that he's in an opening, partnership is broken, John Wright out for 59.
09:17John Wright out for 59.
09:23So we see Wright getting down the pitch out of his crease, and just the smallest of nicks.
09:33Progressing there, giving himself a little bit of room, and trying to thrash it through the offside or over the top.
09:37I'm not quite sure where in the end, but it certainly wasn't there to be hit.
09:41And John Wright playing a very useful knock for New Zealand indeed, with his 59 runs coming from 79.
09:49John Wright was known for his strong determination and solid skills long before he became India's respected head coach.
09:59As a cricketer, he made history by becoming the first New Zealand best man to score over 4,000 test runs.
10:06A left-handed opening best man with a solid defensive game and a range of stylish shots, John Wright played a key role in New Zealand's success during the 1980s.
10:16He helped his team to win the important matches abroad, especially against strong sides like England and Australia.
10:23One of his proudest achievements was scoring a test century against each of his six teams.
10:29New Zealand played during his time, including a memorable 100 against Sri Lanka in 1991.
10:35But one of the most talked about moments came in 91-92 at Christchurch.
10:40John Wright was 0-99, just one run away from a mass saving century.
10:46When he tried to attack England's Phil Tufnel, missed the ball and got stumped.
10:51England quickly bowled out the rest of the team and won the game with only nine minutes left on the clock.
10:56After retiring from cricket, John Wright moved into coaching.
11:00He started with Kent in England and then took on to the challenging role of coaching the Indian national team.
11:05It was not easy, but John Wright gained respect for his honest and hardworking approach.
11:11He built a strong partnership with Indian captain Saurav Kongoli and together they led India to several historic victories.
11:19Like the famous win over Australia at Kolkata in 2001, a series win in Pakistan and away test win in England and Australia.
11:28He left the Indian team in 2005 and returned to coaching five years later, this time for New Zealand.
11:35In 2010, he was appointed as New Zealand coach.
11:38Under his guidance, New Zealand achieved a rare and memorable test win in Australia over 2011 and reached the semi-final of the 2011 World Cup.
11:49However, after losses against South Africa and West Indies and disagreements with New Zealand cricket director John Buchanan, John Wright stepped down in July 2012.
11:59Despite the ups and downs, John Wright remains a respected figure in cricket history, both for his achievement as a player and his impact as a coach.
