Jacob Duffy Overtakes Richard Hadlee and Cements His Place in New Zealand’s History Books

New Zealander Jacob Duffy holds the second spot in the ICC T20I bowling rankings, trailing only India's premier spinner Varun Chakravarthy.

Jacob Duffy Overtakes Richard Hadlee and Cements His Place in New Zealand’s History Books

Jacob Duffy shattered Sir Richard Hadlee's record for the most wickets by a New Zealander in a calendar year. (via X)

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It has been the year of reckoning for New Zealand speedster Jacob Duffy, who shattered the legendary Sir Richard Hadlee’s 40-year-old record. Duffy achieved this feat after delivering a Player of the Series display against the West Indies in a Test series at home. 

Jacob Duffy’s remarkable nine-wicket haul and an impressive batting display from Devon Conway and Tom Latham across both the innings, helped New Zealand triumph. The Kiwis’ 323-run victory over West Indies in the third and final Test at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui, also resulted in a 2-0 series win. New Zealand also climbed up to the second spot in the WTC standings, with 28 points accumulated.

Batting first, the home side put up a massive 575-run total on the board. They were guided by a stellar double-hundred from Conway and a 137-run innings from skipper Latham. West Indies, in response, did stage a brilliant fightback, scoring 420 runs in their first innings.

It was all thanks to a hundred from Kavem Hodge. The Blackcaps declaring their second innings on 306/2, with Latham and Conway continuing with their batting exploits. This led them in setting up a 462-run target for the Windies.

Despite getting off to a good start, thanks to Brandon King’s 67-run knock, the visitors crumbled in the end for just 138 runs. In-form Jacob Duffy, who had already scalped a four-wicket haul in the first innings, went on a record-breaking spree. He dismantled the Windies’ batting order, finishing with figures of 5/42. Duffy ended the series with a tally of 23 scalps at an average of 15.43, righfully claiming the POTS award.

Jacob Duffy also etched his name in history books, going past legend Sir Richard Hadlee’s record for the most wickets taken by a New Zealander in a calendar year. The right-arm pacer now stands up tall with 81 wickets in 2025 , eclipsing Hadlee’s 1985 tally of 79 scalps. Most of Duffy’s wickets came in white-ball cricket (21 in ODIs and 35 in T20Is), as a result of which he took 36 matches to reach the milestone, while Hadlee completed the feat in just 23 innings.

Furthermore, Jacob Duffy is also on his way to finish as the highest wicket-taker in international cricket, this year. He has taken a record 81 scalps in 36 matches in 2025, followed by Blessing Muzarabani and teammate Matt Henry, who are a distant second, with 65 wickets each. 

R Ashwin applauds RCB for ‘masterstroke’ Jacob Duffy signing

Legendary Indian spinner R Ashwin heaped praise on New Zealand pacer Jacob Duffy, after he picked up a brilliant nine-wicket haul in his side’s Test victory over the West Indies. He also appreciated defending IPL champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru, for signing the bowler.

Jacob Duffy R Ashwin praise
R Ashwin praise RCB for signing Jacob Duffy, while underscoring his great numbers in Tests and T20Is. (via India TV News)

RCB went into the 2026 IPL auction with a limited purse of INR 16.40 crores, having already retained the core players from their title-winning squad. They picked up only two overseas players in the auction, Jordan Cox and Jacob Duffy. The 31-year-old has been among the foremost bowlers in the shortest format of the game this year, having picked up 35 wickets in 21 T20Is at a remarkable average of 15.09.

Following his match-winning display against the West Indies, R Ashwin had an unsurprising reaction. The former CSK icon went all the way to heap praise on a player who has been signed by the Men in Yellow’s southern rivals, RCB. He in fact, under-scoring Duffy’s numbers across all the formats, opined that the deal was an ‘absolute steal’, given RCB secured the bowler’s services at his base price of INR 2 crores. 

What a cricketer Jacob Duffy is turning out to be… At 31, he’s operating at peak efficiency. Absolute steal by RCB to pick him up at a base price of [INR] 2 crore. Sensational coup.

R Ashwin on X (H/T Crictracker)

Apart from Jacob Duffy, the Royal Challengers also have Australian Josh Hazlewood and Sri Lankan Nuwan Thushara among their pace-bowling ranks. Former KKR star Venkatesh Iyer was RCB’s most-expensive buy in the 2026 IPL auction, having signed him for INR 7 crores.

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