The New Zealand and Otago fast bowler has seen his role with the Black Caps grow significantly. He has not only collected numerous trophies at the New Zealand Cricket awards but also featured in a T20 World Cup final and played a key part in the Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s IPL title victory during his debut season.
‘‘I haven’t won a competition since the HRV Cup, back in, what was it, 2013?’’ Duffy recalled.
‘‘It felt great to experience that winning feeling again.
‘‘I was in a World Cup final three months ago, and now I’ve played an IPL final at the same venue. It’s been a series of major events in a short time span.
‘‘At the moment, it’s challenging to fully appreciate it all, especially when you’re away from home for so long.
‘‘But, in the future, I’ll look back and think, ‘that was pretty cool’.’’
Indeed, it was quite an experience.
The Royal Challengers clinched victory over the Gujarat Titans by five wickets with two overs remaining.
In Ahmedabad, the IPL final attracted just over 90,000 fans, with the majority supporting Duffy’s team.
To put that in perspective, that number is nearly the entire population of Southland (104,800), where Duffy hails from.
‘‘Having such a massive crowd cheering for you was incredible.
‘‘But honestly, once you’re in the game, you tend to block out the crowd size and noise.
‘‘It’s very loud, but I find a smaller Dunedin crowd more intimidating, as you can hear individual voices, unlike the 90,000 Indian fans, where it’s just a roar.’’
Facing and playing alongside some of the world’s best players can be daunting.
His teammates included stars like Virat Kohli and Josh Hazlewood.
‘‘One of the great aspects of the IPL is rubbing shoulders with the world’s best players.
‘‘I felt truly thankful. RCB is a fantastic setup—very well organized.
‘‘The coaching staff and everyone involved are first-rate and down-to-earth.
‘‘Initially, I had concerns about potential egos, but in reality, there were none.
‘‘It was an easy environment to be part of, to say the least.’’
During both the T20 World Cup and the IPL, Duffy spent four and a half months in India. His wife, Natasha, is due to have their first child this month, making it difficult to be away for so long.
Duffy is foregoing the tour of England to be at home in Dunedin for the birth.
Becoming a father is an important milestone, and he looks forward to it.
Though he wouldn’t miss it, he did catch some of the action from the first tests between New Zealand and England at Lord’s and wished he could bowl on the challenging wicket.
Watching his friends and rivals for the fast-bowling spots in the Black Caps take plenty of wickets was both satisfying and tough.
‘‘You do feel some Fomo [fear of missing out] watching it all from here.
‘‘The test against Ireland was toughest to watch because I wasn’t in the RCB lineup at the time, so I was just on the sidelines.
‘‘But the team is bowling well. We have a lot of test cricket coming up. It’s a big year for test cricket in New Zealand, and competition for places is good.’’
adrian.seconi@odt.co.nz
