Full name : Christopher Stewart Martin
Born : December 10, 1974, Christchurch, Canterbury
Current age : 35 years
Major teams : New Zealand, Auckland, Canterbury, Warwickshire
Playing role : Bowler
Batting style : Right-hand bat
Bowling style : Right-arm fast-medium
Profile
Chris Martin is an angular fast-medium bowler who receives almost as much attention for his inept batting as for his nagging bowling, which has produced more than 100 Test wickets, including 11 in the match as New Zealand whipped South Africa at Auckland in March 2004. Seven more scalps followed in the next game. It was all the more remarkable as they were his first Tests in almost two years - he had been overlooked since Pakistan piled up 643 at Lahore in May 2002, when Martin took 1 for 108. He got his original chance after a crop of injuries, but did not disgrace himself in the first portion of his Test career, taking 34 wickets at 34 in his initial 11 Tests, including six as Pakistan were crushed by an innings at Hamilton in 2000-01. Since his return he has maintained that average of 34, happy to bowl long spells à la Ewen Chatfield - he claimed 5 for 152 at Brisbane in November 2004, after a surprisingly unproductive England tour. He remained in the frame throughout 2005-06, rounding the season off with 5 for 37 as South Africa struggled in the first innings of the final Test at Johannesburg, which they eventually squeaked by four wickets.
But Martin is likely to be remembered more for his clueless batting: he has 23 ducks and did not make a double-figure score until his 36th Test, against Bangladesh, although he did once manage 25 for his former province, Canterbury, sharing a stand of 75 with Chris Harris. His inability to improve his batting has cost Martin the chance to play more ODIs, although he was chosen in the Twenty20 World Championship squad for September 2007 as the coach John Bracewell believed "it is unlikely that his batting will be exposed in Twenty20 cricket".
