Chris Martin wins inaugural Sir Richard Hadlee Medal at The National Bank Awards night

Chris Martin has become the first-ever recipient of the Sir Richard Hadlee Medal at The National Bank New Zealand Cricket Awards in Auckland.

The Sir Richard Hadlee Medal, named after New Zealand’s finest cricketer, honours New Zealand Cricket’s supreme player of the year.

The 36 year old fast bowler also lifted the Windsor Cup for First-Class bowling, was a National Bank Test Player of the Year finalist and his devastating spell of Test bowling against India in Ahmedabad earned him a nomination for the Fans’ Choice Award. In that match Martin ripped out Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and Suresh Raina to help reduce India to 15 for five and went on to pick up the wicket of captain of MS Dhoni later in the day to finish with figures of five for 63.

In the award period he claimed 18 Test wickets for the BLACKCAPS, 31 wickets for the Auckland Aces in the Plunket Shield and 11 wickets for New Zealand A against Zimbabwe for a total of 60 First-Class victims in the 2010-11 season.

Martin delivered 521.2 overs in First-Class cricket which is the most by a Winsor Cup winner since RJ Hadlee delivered 553.1 in the 1985-86 season.

New Zealand Cricket Chief Executive Justin Vaughan said Chris Martin was an extremely deserving winner after performing consistently all season.

“Chris works very hard and has strongly led the BLACKCAPS and Aces bowling attack for this past season and the Sir Richard Hadlee Medal is well deserved,” said Vaughan.

“There were a number of individuals who put their hand up for the supreme award but no one can deny that in the past 12 months Chris has been a stand-out performer in international and domestic First-Class cricket.

“Chris is a well-liked sporting personality and will be a popular winner with cricket fans and his peers. It gives me enormous pleasure to congratulate him on his achievement.”

New Zealand Cricket Awards

Redpath Cup
Awarded to the batsman whose performances in men’s First Class cricket have been the most meritorious. [2010 winner: Ross Taylor]
Nominees: Daniel Flynn, Peter Ingram, Brendon McCullum
Winner: Peter Ingram

Central Stags opening batsman Peter Ingram struck four centuries in his 969 First-Class runs with a high score of 143 in the 2010-11 season. His tally of 858 Plunket Shield runs was 125 higher than his closest rival and came at an average of 50.47. Ingram also hit 111 First-Class runs for New Zealand A against Zimbabwe.

Winsor Cup
Awarded to the bowler whose performances in men’s First Class cricket have been the most meritorious. [2010 winner: Daniel Vettori]
Nominees: Brent Arnel, Neil Wagner, Chris Martin
Winner: Chris Martin

Chris Martin led the bowling attack and performed consistently for the BLACKCAPS, New Zealand A and the Auckland Aces taking 60 wickets at an average of 25.60. He bagged five wickets on four occasions and bowled a staggering 521.2 overs. Fellow nominee Brent Arnel had the second highest work-rate with 390.3 overs.

Fans Choice for Outstanding Individual Performance

The Fans’ Choice award for Outstanding Individual Performance is voted on by cricket fans across the nation. It recognises individual performances that were stellar, either showcasing the massive skill arsenal of the players themselves or having the power to alter match outcomes. [2010 winner: Brendon McCullum]
www.blackcaps.co.nz/fanschoice
Nominees: Neil Wagner, Chris Martin, Ross Taylor, Tim Southee, Matt Henry
Winner: Neil Wagner

The Otago left-armer became the first bowler in the history of First-Class cricket to take five wickets in a six ball over. He reduced Wellington, from 136 for four to 136 for nine in the final over before lunch and finished with career-best figures of six for 36. The final four wickets were all bowled.

Sir Jack Newman Award
Presented to an outstanding junior cricket administrator in New Zealand each year for past and present services to the game. [2010 winner: John Grocott]
Winner: Nick Craig from Auckland

Nick Craig has devoted 19 years of volunteer service aimed at developing and fostering the talent, skills and enjoyment of cricketers in the Auckland area. Arguably his greatest achievement was the establishment of an academy at the Howick Pakuranga Cricket Club. In 1998 the clubrooms were destroyed by fire and it was the passion and drive of our winner, behind a rebuild fundraising effort, that raised over $460,000 towards the project

The Bert Sutcliffe Medal
For outstanding services to cricket. [2010 winner: Martin Horton]
Winner: Ces Renwick

Ces Renwick’s passion for cricket started in 1946 when he assisted the head groundsman at Eden Park before leading the development of grounds and pitches at Cornwall Cricket Club where continued on as a volunteer for 30 years. He authored a manual on cricket ground and pitch preparation that is widely used by practising groundsmen across the country.

Gillette Young Player of the Year
[2010 winner: Matthew Rowe]
Winner: Simon Hickey – King’s College

Simon Hickey’s outstanding all-round skill and commitment helped King’s College lift the 2011 Gillette Cup. He hit 226 runs in the tournament with a top score of 93 and average of 56.5. In the final he top scored with 51 and took two for 14 to set up a convincing 81 run victory over Christchurch Boys’ High School.

Domestic Player of the Year – Men
Awarded to the most outstanding player in men's domestic cricket. [2010 winner: Michael Bates]
Winner: Rob Nicol

Rob Nicol was the backbone of the Canterbury Wizards batting line up and provided a useful spin option, helping his side win the Plunket Shield and reach the final of the Men’s One-Day competition. He dominated the short form matches, topping the run scoring ladder in both the HRV Cup (285) and Men’s One Day (648) competitions. He capped the season by taking out the overall Mitre 10 MVP award.

Domestic Player of the Year – Women
Awarded to the most outstanding player in women's domestic cricket. [2010 winner: Nicola Browne]
Winner: Sophie Devine

Wellington Blaze all-rounder Sophie Devine had an exceptional year with bat and ball in both the Action Cricket Cup and Action Cricket Twenty20. The 2010-11 season marked Devine’s most dominant year, scoring four fifties including her highest score of 99 not out and taking a total of 24 wickets in 15 matches. She was the overall Mitre 10 MVP domestic women’s cricket award winner.

International Women’s Player of the Year
Awarded to the player in women’s international cricket have been the most meritorious.
Nominees: Aimee Watkins, Nicola Browne, Sara McGlashan
Winner: Sara McGlashan

McGlashan has a reputation as one of the best fielders in women’s cricket and is responsible for numerous run-outs and direct hits. She is one of the most destructive batsmen when in full flight, having a Twenty20 strike-rate of 113 in the eight matches played. In 2010-11 she lifted her ICC batting ranking to eighth in the world.

The National Bank Twenty20 Player of the Year
Awarded to the most outstanding player in Twenty20 International cricket.
Winner: Tim Southee

Tim Southee destroyed Pakistan in the first Twenty20 match of The National Bank Series, taking five wickets in the space of eight balls including a hat-trick. His figures of five for 18 are the best by a BLACKCAP in Twenty20 Internationals and he went on to finish the season with eight wickets at an average of 12.12.

The National Bank One Day International Player of the Year
Awarded to the most outstanding player in One-Day International cricket
Nominees: Martin Guptill, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor
Winner: Ross Taylor

Ross Taylor comfortably topped the runs ladder for the BLACKCAPS with 798 at an average of 39;90 in the 2010-11 season. At the ICC Cricket World Cup he struck 324 runs at 64.80 with the highlight being his unbeaten 131 against Pakistan where he helped the BLACKCAPS to a total of 302 and ultimately set up the 110 run victory.

The National Bank Test Player of the Year
Awarded to the most outstanding player in Test cricket
Nominees: Chris Martin, Brendon McCullum, Daniel Vettori
Winner: Brendon McCullum

In 2010-11 Brendon McCullum cemented his place as a Test opener after giving up the wicket-keeping responsibilities before the start of the season. In five matches he hit 527 runs at an average of 58.55 including an innings where he batted for over nine hours against India to reach 225 and save the match.

Sir Richard Hadlee Medal
The supreme award presented to the player whose performances in New Zealand Cricket have been the most outstanding.
Winner: Chris Martin