Craig Cumming has been confirmed as the new Head Coach of The Blaze, joining after a trophy-laden stint leading Otago Sparks in New Zealand.
The former Blackcaps international arrives with a fine track record across three decades in the game.
A player of pedigree
Batting at the top of the order, Cumming compiled an impressive track record at domestic level, earning an elevation to the global stage.
After earning his stripes with Canterbury in a period when the South Island side were serial trophy-winners, he came of age after moving to Otago in 2000.
Twelve seasons with the side saw Cumming become Otago’s all-time leading run-scorer in First-Class cricket, amassing 6,589 runs and hitting 21 centuries. In List A cricket, he made over 3,000 runs – including an unbeaten 86 as Otago won the 2007/08 State Shield Final – while he also served as Otago’s captain for a decade.
His performances saw him gain recognition at international level, where he made a hard-fought 74 on Test debut against the Australia of Warne, McGrath and Gillespie in 2005 – one of 24 appearances for the Blackcaps.
A coach of calibre
Having also enjoyed a punditry career with the likes of Sky Sport in New Zealand, Cumming began to coach Otago Sparks in 2020, and was soon appointed as the side’s first-ever full-time Head Coach.
Having finished bottom of the 50-over Hallyburton Johnstone Shield table in each of the previous two summers, without winning a game, Cumming oversaw an immediate, dramatic reversal of fortunes.
The Sparks claimed the 2021/22 List A title, outclassing Wellington Blaze by 138 runs in a one-sided final in which Eden Carson took 5/17 from ten overs.
Carson is one of a number of players to have benefitted from Cumming’s tutelage, earning her first international cap in July 2022.
Two years later, Sparks repeated the feat, topping the 50-over regular-season table and triumphing over Blaze once more in the showpiece – and the defending champions have won their first four fixtures in this summer’s competition.
T20 silverware narrowly eluded Sparks in 2022, as Blaze claimed victory in the Super Smash final. There was personal success, however, for captain Suzie Bates, who hit a tournament-leading 504 runs.
At international level, Cumming coached New Zealand A to a 2-1 series win over an England A side which included The Blaze captain Kirstie Gordon.
And this was not Cumming’s first encounter with his new skipper – Gordon enjoyed a brief stint with Otago in 2022/23, shortly prior to becoming captain at Trent Bridge.
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