Empowering the next gen, scoring big hundreds, being a team man - Henry Nicholls on his ten years with NZ

New Zealand benefited from the composure you brought to the opener's role while making 68 in the first ODI in Mirpur. What was going through your mind when you lost your opening partner, Nick Kelly, early in the innings, especially on that pitch?

We assessed that the wicket was a bit slow and inconsistent. It was only probably going to get harder throughout the day, so we just tried to build those partnerships up top, knowing that as you went through the innings, if you lost wickets, it's hard for guys to start. We put the value on that, and again, we managed to do it fairly well. We could have done it a little bit better, but I think the contributions from the top down to the middle order and the guys at the end were certainly telling, a.

Are you the type of batter who has his set scoring areas or are you more about reacting to the circumstances?

It is about trying to react to what's given to you. We come to these parts of the world and, like anywhere overseas, there's different surfaces, different bowlers. Some of those things obviously impact some of your scoring areas. But generally, it's just trying to keep it really simple and try and find ways to be effective. Yesterday [April 17, the first ODI] was the start of a three-match series for us. We'll learn a lot from it and be better again in the next game.

New Zealand are playing without Devon Conway, Daryl Mitchell, Kyle Jamieson, Glenn Phillips and Michael Bracewell - all away on franchise T20 duties. What is it like playing in a line-up without a lot of these experienced guys in the team?

It's really exciting. I think we have seen in the last few years the depth of our team. Those of us who play domestic cricket, we have seen that these guys have a lot of experience behind them. So even though they might be new to some of the people out there, for us we've got a lot of confidence in them and these experiences are so invaluable. Someone like Dean Foxcroft - playing his second ODI - looked really confident and has had a big impact.

When you started out, you were playing alongside the likes of Brendon McCullum, Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor. What was it like batting with them and being in the same dressing room?

Playing under Brendon and then the greatness of Kane - I am very grateful to have been part of those teams. I definitely learned a lot from playing with them but also being around the dressing room with them. Now being more of a senior member [of the team myself], I learned from the positive impact they had on me.

That's exactly what I'm trying to do with a lot of the guys on our team. I share my experiences and make sure that guys from the squad are really comfortable and confident. The skill level we have, even from guys coming on their very first or second tour, is really high. I think the belief within the team for those guys is high as well, so they come in and are able to contribute straight away. The environment and culture of our team is such that we empower them straight away, so it's great to see guys getting opportunities but also them really looking like they're enjoying their cricket.

Now you're playing alongside talented batters like Conway, Mitchell and Rachin Ravindra.

Yeah, time goes pretty quickly. I still feel like it wasn't long ago that I was just starting out [in 2015]. Daryl, Devon and Rachin are just such phenomenal players. To see the consistent impact they've had across all three formats is what's propelled this New Zealand team. We are always competitive and playing for big moments.

It's really great to see that they are off doing their thing at some of those franchise tournaments. The guys who come in really step up and have an impact themselves in this team. I think the depth across New Zealand cricket is a testament to that. Those guys [Conway, Mitchell and Ravindra] setting the bar really high that the rest of us and the young guys coming through really want to aspire to be a part of as well.

You completed ten years in Test cricket in February this year. How do you look back at your Test debut, against Australia in Wellington, where you got a second-innings half-century?

I think being a New Zealand kid in any sport, really, Australia's always the iconic match-up. I grew up watching the Black Caps battling against Australia, so for my Test debut to come about at the Basin Reserve against them was a surreal moment. For me, Test cricket is the pinnacle, so it was a very special experience.

It was Brendon's last Test series as well. To be part of his last Test, at the Hagley Oval, and obviously the innings he played [McCullum broke the record for the fastest Test hundred]. We were actually talking about it yesterday in the dugout and I just said how surreal it was. He is such an iconic player across the world. It was a special series to be a part of.

Your first Test hundred came in your 13th Test, in 2017 against South Africa in Wellington, again. You had scored 98 against Bangladesh just before that, but it was something of a wait to get to that first century. Were you nervous about it at that time?

I don't think so. It's one of the things everyone always talks about. Often when you want to get something - and obviously as a batter you want to get hundreds, you want your first at any level - but you get it and it's not really as much a relief as you think it is. It was nice to get the hundred, but we lost the Test match, so it sort of pales in comparison. It was certainly very special to get my first one.

Five of your ten Test hundreds are unbeaten knocks. Is that something you have looked at?

They are obviously quite situational, you know. In the [century against] England [in Auckland in 2018], there was a lot of rain in the match and then we ended up clearing [winning by an innings]. Similar with the century against Sri Lanka [in Wellington in 2023], and some of the other ones, so there's not too much in it.

In ODIs you have hit 17 half-centuries but only one hundred. Have you been working on changing that?

Again, the nature of my career has been batting at the top of the order to down at six sometimes. A lot of the focus goes into the milestones, but certainly for me, [it's about] acknowledging that at times with your role, that's not as relevant. Certainly when you're a batter at the top of the order in one-day cricket, that's something that would be nice to be able to add. Even for the rest of this team, regardless what your role is, it is not so much stats-based; it's about just trying to contribute and have the impact.

You have been part of several big moments in New Zealand cricket. You were the side's top scorer in the 2019 World Cup final and you were part of the team's 2021 World Test Championship title win. And your Wellington knock against Sri Lanka in 2023 was a double-hundred. Which one would you rate as your best moment?

Well, I don't know if I can say that the 2019 World Cup was the best moment. It was hard to forget. I think definitely winning the inaugural World Test Championship was a really, really special achievement for that group. That's something that will always bind us together. It wasn't just the 15 players that were there for that final but also the guys who played throughout that two-year period. I think that's why it's such a great concept. You play in different conditions and, over a two-year period, your depth as a team gets really tested. Again, the final was a little bit foreign to a lot of us. Australia has the Sheffield Shield final but for our domestic competition, we don't have a final. We just have a round-robin. So it was really something different, heading into a final. It was over six days and because it rained for two of them, we won on the sixth day. That was something really unique.

It was just incredibly special to be part of that team. Playing alongside Kane, Ross, Tim [Southee] and Trent [Boult] - legends of our game. Everyone will always remember us as the inaugural winners.

If a young batter wants to know how he or she should go about scoring daddy hundreds like you score, what would be some aspects that they should look at?

I think as a batter, regardless of how many you get, you always want to get more. Certainly for me, over the journey of my career, it's something I am still trying to figure out. People who do it the best certainly don't change too much. They don't put any certain milestone on a pedestal of really wanting to get to a hundred or 150.

Whenever I get that [milestone], I always want to keep going. I think it is about trying to find a tempo of play. It is also about knowing that there are ebbs and flows in red-ball cricket. You need a bit of luck in between, and often the hardest is sometimes when you want to get something too much.

Often I find that when you are in a good, relaxed space, which is being present out in the middle, staying nice and calm gives you the best chance. Also knowing that as a batter, more often than not you are often going to get [a score] below your average. But when you have those good days, try to make them really good days. Red-ball cricket is the most challenging and the most rewarding if you can do it well.

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