There was a hint of confidence in Matt Henry’s voice in Thiruvananthapuram on Friday. The 34-year-old fast bowler, now leading New Zealand’s bowling line-up in the Tim Southee and Trent Boult era, spoke of the importance of remaining composed in the face of carnage.
“In T20 cricket, you can’t change what has already happened,” Henry said, stressing the importance of sticking to your plans and not getting tired when under pressure.
Henry has witnessed this reality firsthand over the years. Blessed with one of the smoothest bowling actions in the game and a keen cricketing mind, he has enjoyed considerable success in the longer formats. In fact, Henry has taken more wickets across all formats of international cricket than any other bowler in the last three years.
And he continues to develop in T20 cricket.
The journey through India was brutal, but it was also a major learning curve. India went all out in the second and third T20Is. They chased the 209th in Raipur in just 15.2 overs. Guwahati managed to chase down the target of 154 in just 10 overs.
Henry, who led a young and inexperienced bowling attack, looked as helpless as his peers as Abhishek Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav threw sixes for fun and broke records at will.
But neither Henry nor New Zealand threw in the towel. In the fourth T20I, a special from Tim Seifert and a cameo from Daryl Mitchell helped them post 215 on the board.
Henry then took the most important wicket of the day, dismissing the marauding Abhishek Sharma off the first ball. It proved decisive as India were effectively shorthanded in Vizag and eventually crumbled under scoreboard pressure, despite a mad six from Shivam Dube.
‘T20 CRICKET ALL ABOUT CONFIDENCE’
While Henry has only faced Abhishek once in three Twenty20 matches, he seems to be well aware of the plan needed to battle such brutal batsmen who can take the game away from the opposition in the matter of overs.
“It’s a bit of everything, really. I think when you’re in different conditions, the first thing you do is adapt and see what’s on offer. You judge whether the shot was high-risk from their side or whether it didn’t go well and from there you park the ball and move on. In T20 cricket, you can’t change what’s already happened under the pressure of the bowl,” Abhish Henry said when asked how quickly the bowlers have bowled. similarly.
“It’s about staying true to what you’re trying to achieve there, whether you adjust your plans as you see fit or stick to the plan you had because you trust and believe that’s the best way to get wickets. The way T20 is going, it’s all about taking wickets – that’s the best way to stop the flow of runs,” he said.
New Zealand’s young bowling group, under immense pressure, gained experience they would not have gained had they not toured India just weeks before the T20 World Cup.
With Lockie Ferguson and James Neesham still not 100 per cent ready to field, Henry led the pace bowling attack with the likes of Ben Foulkes and Jacob Duffy.
Even New Zealand’s most experienced and crafty spinners – captain Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi – were taken to the cleaners.
But as a collective, New Zealand are learning from the experience to put them in a better place as they prepare for the T20 World Cup, which is played in familiar conditions in India and Sri Lanka from February 7.
“T20 cricket is about confidence. How can you keep coming back and challenge the batting when you’re under pressure? You can’t control the outcome, but you can control your effort. If you keep evolving and keep learning, that’s where you put your energy,” said Henry.
“I think that was probably the highlight of the series for us. The first couple of games were a great learning experience. It’s never nice to be under that kind of pressure, but we knew the long-term picture was preparing for the World Cup. How do you put teams under pressure when they’re flying like that?”
This theme was constant throughout the tour.
“It’s challenging from a bowling point of view, but the key is how you come back in your next over. How do you still have an impact on the game and not worry about what has already happened? That’s an important piece to focus on,” he said.
“I think that was probably the highlight of the series for us. The first couple of games were a great learning experience. It’s never nice to be under that kind of pressure, but we knew the long-term picture was preparing for the World Cup. How do you put teams under pressure when they’re flying like that?”
On Thursday, New Zealand handled the dewy evening brilliantly, defending 215 to secure a comprehensive 50-run victory.
Historically, teams have struggled with heavy evening dew, but early wickets have allowed New Zealand to effectively control proceedings.
LESSONS NOT LOSSES
New Zealand cricket’s identity has long been defined by the ability to learn from tough outings, rather than obsessing over results. This culture has been carried over by the current management group with Santner and Henry at the forefront.
“You always want to win, but it’s about how you grow as a group and find ways. We’ve had different conditions everywhere we’ve been. One consistent was the small pitches we’re used to in New Zealand, but the lack of bounce and the dew factor was huge,” he said.
“Secondly in bowling, the conditions are often more in favor of the batsman, but it’s not about using that as an excuse. It’s about finding a way. How does that look for us? Staying true to who we are and taking confidence from the good things we do.”
“Even though the result looks a bit tighter, there’s still a lot of good in the little moments in between. We took that confidence into the third game, the result took care of itself and the pleasing thing for me was our consistency in that space,” he said.
New Zealand will be looking to end the T20I series on a high when they take on India in the fifth and final match in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday. There will also be more lessons to absorb – lessons that could sharpen their edge ahead of the T20 World Cup.
The side will be further boosted by the return of veterans Ferguson and Neesham, who were part of the training squad in the South Indian city on Friday. It remains to be seen whether the duo will play the match on Saturday or hold off until the T20 World Cup warm-ups that begin next week.
– The end
Issued by:
Saurabh Kumar
Published on:
January 30, 2026