The last day of 2025 for the New Zealanders turned out to be a day of celebration as they completed the West Indies’ three-match series with a grand victory of 323 runs at the Bay Oval to win the series 2-0 after the opening duo of Brandon King and John Campbell made things a little difficult early in the fourth innings.
The West Indies team appeared quite comfortable with their strategy of batting through the last day which was clearly aimed at drawing the match as they had a target of 462 runs, but the main bowler of New Zealand, Jacob Duffy, took the situation into his own hands and created a collapse by getting rid of Brandon King at 67 (96), which resulted in him getting a five-wicket haul.
Importantly, during his journey to a match-winning 5/42, he not only overtook the iconic Richard Hadlee in the count of a Kiwi bowler getting the most international wickets in a year but also secured the number one position.
Most wickets for a New Zealand bowler in a year
Jacob Duffy (2025) – 81 wickets in 36 matches
Richard Hadlee (1985) – 79 wickets in 23 matches
Daniel Vettori (2008) – 76 wickets in 33 matches
Trent Boult (2015) – 72 wickets in 25 matches
Trent Boult (2017) – 69 wickets in 27 matches
His bowling figures of 5/42 in the third Test’s second innings completed the match figures of 9/128 (57.3) and he was the highest wicket-taker in the series with 23 wickets in 6 innings.
He not only surpassed Hadlee but also finished 2025 as the top wicket-taker in all formats of the game, with Matt Henry, his partner in crime, far behind him at 65 wickets. His achievements do not stop here, as he has also risen to the world number 2 in the T20I ranking.
His next adventure will be in India, where the team will play three ODIs and five T20Is prior to the T20 World Cup, which begins on January 11, followed by a stint with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, the defending champions, in the Indian Premier League.
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