By Greg Stutchbury
WELLINGTON, March 25 (Reuters) – Just two weeks ago, pace
bowler Mark Gillespie was focused on letting his badly damaged
toe heal and finding a job when New Zealand’s first class
cricket season came to an end.
But after taking 11 South African wickets in two tests since
his surprise call-up to the national squad for the first time in
more than three years, the 32-year-old’s plans for the next few
months could be very different.
At his home ground of the Basin Reserve on Sunday, Gillespie
took six for 113 in South Africa’s 474 for nine declared as the
visitors looked to bat New Zealand out of the final test.
Gillespie was only brought back into the test squad for the
second match at Seddon Park in Hamilton, where he took five for
59 and his performances may have booked his place for New
Zealand’s tour of West Indies in July and August.
“I think you could go back two weeks. I was getting ready
for the season to end and then get my body right over the winter
and find a job, find something to do, earn some money,”
Gillespie told reporters on Sunday.
“And yeah, now things might be a little bit different.”
Gillespie’s wife, parents and brothers were in the crowd on
Sunday and taking the six-wicket haul had been particularly
special for him, though he was a little annoyed that Graeme
Smith had declared at nine down.
“On debut (against South Africa in 2007) when I got ‘five
for’ I got told I could have set a record if I had got one more
wicket,” he said.
Continued…
