Birthday special: Brendon McCullum – The flying Kiwi

Brendon McCullum is a name that struck fear in the hearts of every bowler in the world. The former Kiwi cricketer was one of the most hard-hitting batters to have ever played the game. A wicketkeeper by trade, McCullum was renowned for his dance down the ground even to the fastest of bowlers. His dashing shots made him one of the most entertaining batters of all time. The diminutive cricketer holds several records to his name, with the fastest century in red-ball cricket being one of his best since he beat the record of his childhood hero Vivian Richards to reach the feat.

Since retiring from cricket, the Kiwi has indulged in coaching and so has created an English side in his own image, which plays a fearless brand of cricket. On the eve of his 41st Birthday, we look at some of the lesser-known facts about the blazing globetrotter.

Connection with Otago

Born in a cricketing family, Brendon McCullum represented domestic side Otago. Incidentally, his father also represented the same side during his playing career, followed by his sibling Nathan McCullum, who also played alongside his brother for the national team.

The spot-fixing scandal

Brendon McCullum turned he few heads when he revealed approaches made by former Kiwi all-rounder Chris Cairns for ‘spot-fixing’ matches. McCullum revealed he was approached three times by the famed all-rounder and did not report the incident earlier because he considered Cairns a great friend, before eventually reporting the allegations to cricket’s anti-corruption authorities in February 2011.

Rugby interest

The former New Zealand captain has several accolades to his name in the world of cricket and is regarded as one of the most influential cricketers in New Zealand’s history. But it could all have been very different as the Kiwi was picked in front of All Blacks great Dan Carter at first-five in the South Island secondary schools rugby team in 2000. He was a tremendously gifted rugby player but chose cricket later in his career.

A successful joint venture with Stephen Fleming

Brendon McCullum shares an amicable relationship with his former skipper Stephen Fleming, and the duo started a digital platform CricHQ, which specializes in competition management. Some of its notable clients include the administration Test countries New Zealand, Sri Lanka, South Africa, and Zimbabwe among several others.