The late Jonah Lomu and Martin Crowe have had a trophy named after them for the inaugural cricket match between the Black Caps and All Blacks.
All Blacks legend Lomu died at the age of 40 in 2015, while Crowe, the former New Zealand cricket captain, passed away at the age of 53 in 2016.
The match will take place on 25 January at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch.
‘It’s truly fitting that the names of these two national heroes have pride of place on what is a wonderful, iconic piece of Kiwi art,’ said Duco Events founder and director David Higgins, who is organising the fixture dubbed the ‘Black Clash’.
‘I’ve always believed that Martin and Jonah have not been fully recognised for the contribution they made to the country through their tremendous deeds on and off the sports field. Both Martin and Jonah were men whose achievements transcended the sports field. So to be able to honour them, even in a small way by naming the T20 Black Clash trophy the Lomu-Crowe Trophy, just feels right.’
The rugby team will feature several All Blacks stars, including backline kingpin Israel Dagg. Australian batsman David Hussey will play for the All Blacks, too, as a so-called ‘international wildcard’.
‘It’s huge. Look at the trophy, it’s amazing, it’s beautiful. It symbolises New Zealand, and obviously you’ve got two great, world-renowned athletes in Lomu and Crowe. Those names will live on forever,’ added Dagg.
South Africa’s Proteas and Springboks have played similar cricket fixtures previously.
Team Rugby: Kieran Read (c), Richie McCaw, Israel Dagg, Beauden Barrett, Jordie Barrett, Aaron Smith, Jason Spice, Ali Williams, Kendra Cocksedge, Kaylum Boshier, Ofisa Tunu’u (wicketkeeper), David Hussey (international wildcard).
Team Cricket: Brendon McCullum (c), Grant Elliott, Luke Ronchi (wicketkeeper), Kyle Mills, Chris Harris, Nathan Astle, James Franklin, Hamish Marshall, Liz Perry.
