John Bracewell, a handy off-spinner and a useful lower-order batsman. He came from a family that produced some fine cricketers - the latest being current New Zealand fast bowler Doug Bracewell, his nephew. John started his career with Auckland and soon was playing for his country in 1980.

The high arm action allowed him to extra bounce and trouble the batsman. He picked up three 6-wicket hauls in Tests - all coming in a winning cause. His 6/32 helped the Kiwis beat Australia, hence becoming the first side to thrash Australia twice in one winter. He was more than an accomplished lower-order batsman. He was one of the few guys at that time to take 100 wickets and score over 1000 runs in Tests.

After retiring from Tests, John took over the coaching role with Gloucestershire. His methods and ideas helped them win a number one-day trophies during the turn of the millennium. John came back to New Zealand and was made the head coach of the national side. He had a fruitful time with the Black Caps, guiding them through the 2003 and 2007 World Cup. His contract was extended when New Zealand reached the semi-final of the 2007 World Cup, but things went downhill and the Kiwis slipped to eight in the Test rankings.

John returned to Gloucestershire and took over the coaching responsibility once more. However, there was another call waiting, this time to take over reigns from Phil Simmons as the Ireland coach. He accepted the job and started in May 2015.



By Akshay Maanay