Wellington, Apr.3 (ANI): Legendary New Zealand all-rounder Sir Richard Hadlee was formally inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame during the lunch interval on the first day of the third and final Test between New Zealand and India at Basin Reserve, Wellington on Friday.

The 57-year-old from Christchurch, who was appointed as a Member of British Empire (MBE) in 1981 and knighted in 1990, received his commemorative cap from ICC President David Morgan as ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat looked on.

After the ceremony Hadlee said: “Obviously, I am delighted. I have been fortunate enough during my life in cricket to be acknowledged in so many different ways and they are all very special in their own rights.

“But when you are one of the 55 in the history of the game that goes back to the 1800s through to the 20th century and when you look at some of the players who have also been inducted, to be part of that particular elite group is something very special indeed. So I am very grateful to be recognised in that way.

“This honour is right up there with the others. So many fantastic players have been recognised, some that I have played against, others that I watched and read about as a youngster, and many others in the early 1900s that were legendary in their own right and fantastic role models.

“I have a lot of respect for this award as I understand what all the players in this particular group had to go through to be able to become champion players.

“It would have been nice if my father (Walter Hadlee) was around. He would have been as proud as me to get this recognition. He had advised that I always play hard and play competitively to win. But he wanted the values of fair play and sportsmanship to be upheld always.”

ICC President David Morgan said: “Sir Richard is without question one of world cricket’s greatest all-rounders with 431 Test wickets and 3,124 runs. These numbers tell a story.

“Sir Richard was the first bowler to take 400 Test wickets and I had the additional pleasure of seeing him perform in partnership with Clive Rice at Nottingham’s Trent Bridge.

“Today is a proud day for New Zealand and Nottingham and it is an honour for me to induct Sir Richard into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame.”

Hadlee, one of five sons of former New Zealand captain Walter, is the only New Zealander in the initial intake of 55 players in the Hall of Fame*, a joint venture between the ICC and the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA).

Hadlee is regarded as one of the greatest exponents of the new ball. He was one of the four greatest all-rounders during the 1980s along with Imran Khan of Pakistan, England’s Sir Ian Botham and Kapil Dev of India.

Hadlee played 86 Tests from 1973 to 1990 in which he took 431 wickets (at the time a world record), including the wicket of Devon Malcolm off his last ball in Test cricket, and also scored 3,124 runs. In 115 ODIs, he claimed 158 wickets and contributed 1,751 runs. (ANI)