Perfect line-length, great speed, swing bouncer and yorker, Richard Hadley, Shane Edward Bond was undisputedly the best and most successful pacer in New Zealand cricket and a terrific wicket-taker. With the combination of late swing with his express speed, he would become 'unplayable' to the batsmen!
He could swing the ball on both sides. Bond could have lifted the ball extra on any wicket. The yorkers that entered his late inswing are like terrible weapons of mass destruction! Moreover, stamping on a fast-moving 'toe-crushing' yorker was a regular occurrence on the cricket field.
Aggressive body language and unyielding mentality always kept him one step ahead of the opponent. In any wicket, his pair matched the weight to catch the storm of speed in the chest! Had the fatal injury not recurred on the road to success, perhaps his name would have been mentioned along with the 'best of all time' fast bowlers in the history of cricket!
Today is the 46th birthday of this cricketer. He was born on June 8, 1975 in Christchurch, New Zealand.