12 Facts about Paul Wiseman: The former New Zealand spinner

If you go around asking who Paul Wiseman is, you wouldn’t get very far in your survey. A former New Zealand off-spinner and a damn good one in his time, Wiseman never really achieved the fame and the limelight that he deserved. Having announced his retirement some time back, Paul Wiseman has been involved in the game having being appointed as the spin coach for the Kiwis.

1. Birth:

Paul Wiseman was born on the 4^th of May 1970 in Auckland.

2. Nickname:

He is fondly known as ‘Wiz’.

3. Subtle Variations:

Paul has never been known to be a massive turner of the ball. However, courtesy of his subtle variations and his ability to bowl in subcontinental conditions, he became a part of the New Zealand team.

4. Test Career:

With the Kiwis rather desperate for a spinner, Wiseman was given his first call-up to the national side for New Zealand’s tour of Sri Lanka in 1998. He made his debut against the Lankans in Colombo. However, despite decent performances against the Islanders, Wiseman’s career never really took off. He ended up playing just 25 Test matches picking up just 61 wickets.

6. ODI Career:

In a distinct similarity to his Test career, Wiseman’s ODI career proved to be as bad. He played just the 15 ODIs, picking up just the 12 wickets. He made his ODI debut in 1998 against India at Sharjah.

7. The silent Knight:

A rather silent cricket, Paul called it a day at the ripe old age of 39 following a brief stint with Durham. This concluded a rather quiet 10-year cricketing career.

8. Coach mode:

Wiseman has held two positions with the New Zealand cricket team following his retirement. He initially plied his expertise as the spin bowling coach for the side, nurturing the likes of Nathan McCullum and Mark Craig. He also held the role of talent identification manager soon after.

9. First-class career:

Apart from playing internationally for New Zealand, he has also plied his off-break spinning trade for Auckland, Otago, Canterbury in New Zealand and for Durham in English County cricket. He has featured in 186 First-class games.

10. The Sri Lankan rainmaker:

A rainmaker is often referred to a salesperson who brings in an audacious sum of money through sales. In Sri Lanka 1998, Wiseman took 5 wickets in the first Test at Colombo. The Kiwis went on to win the match as Wiseman ended up with figures of 5/82 in the first innings. Sanath Jayasuriya and Marvan Attapatu were among his scalps.

11. An unusual nemesis:

Paul Wiseman, a hard-working off-spinner, never quite provided New Zealand with the match-winning partner for Daniel Vettori that they were searching for.

12. Five wickets on debut:

His five-wicket haul on debut made him only the fourth Kiwi to achieve the feat. Fen Cresswell, Alex Moir, and Bruce Taylor were the other to achieve it before him. It took 9 years for another Kiwi to join these four players when Mark Gillespie tore apart a strong South African line-up in a losing cause at Centurion. Tim Southee and Doug Bracewell are the only other players to achieve this feat.