Matt Henry becomes the world No 1 in New Zealand test bowling history.
Matt Henry has caught Jasprit Bumrah on the number one perch in the latest ICC Men’s Test Bowling Rankings. The 32-year-old from Christchurch found himself sharing the top spot with Bumrah in the June 24, 2026 rankings update, with both bowlers accumulating 870 rating points to be designated World No. 1 Test bowlers.
This is a huge achievement for New Zealand as they are now at the number one ranking place for the third time after Jack Cowie (1947) and Sir Richard Hadlee (1984). It will be a huge achievement in history as he is New Zealand’s first seamer to achieve this since legendary Richard Hadlee more than three decades back in 1990. Henry has enjoyed an immense run in the second half of 2026 across all formats of the game. It had been 36 years since a New Zealander last occupied the top position in the rankings of test bowler with ‘Slinger’.
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Meanwhile, Jasprit Bumrah will look to respond and retake his place alone at the top in the coming days. He was world no.1 Test bowler since December 2024 and lost his place when Henry made into the #1 spot in latest rankings. Henry ends 36-Year wait for New Zealand pacers.
In the first half of 2026, Henry achieved 6 rating points by grabbing five wickets against Sri Lanka, in that match it was a historical day for Henry who played 68 tests against SL which are equal number of tests played by Sir Richard Hadlee too in all his career. He had the opportunity to score his second Test Century of his Career in the same test and had done exceptionally well with the Bat as well as well with the Ball. It was a fantastic come-back and brilliant performances from the New Zealander as he scored Centuries in Sri Lanka and in test match he was dismissed on 98 with Sri Sri Lankan Team’s help of their fielders in one of the test match at Home against them and he had been absolutely tremendous.
This clearly show NZ bowlers were up for this challenge and this clearly proves to the critics that NZ bowlers are well capable to lead the NZ test bowling to #1 ranked position . This article is purely a figment of imagination, and should not be taken as fact. This is my 11th creative writing piece since I joined, I will endeavor to add more creative writing articles soon.
As of June 2026, the world’s two highest-ranked Test bowlers boast outstanding career records: Yahoo Sports
| Bowler | Test Wickets | Best Bowling Figures | Bowling Average | Economy Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matt Henry | 152 | 7/23 | 26.05 | 3.11 |
| Jasprit Bumrah | 234 | 6/27 | 19.79 | 2.77 |
In the history of test cricket played for New Zealand, the only players who have achieved a rating above 870 with bat or ball are Hadlee and batter Kane Williamson, who has attained a highest of 919 rating points in 2021.
Bumrah had been sitting at the top position among the bowlers all alone after overtaking Kagiso Rabada in November 2024. England batter Joe Root is also back to top position among the batters after overtaking his teammate Harry Brook and Travis Head of Australia.
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