New Zealand veteran player Ross Taylor on Boxing Day became the most capped New Zealand cricketer at the international level. The first Test match of 2-match series between New Zealand and Pakistan at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui is his 438th international appearance for the Kiwis.
The record was previously held by left-arm spinner Daniel Vettori who represented New Zealand in 437 in international games. Apart from these two players, former captain Brendon McCullum (432 games) is the only other NZ player to have featured in 400+ games for New Zealand at the international level. Here is the top 5 players who have represented New Zealand in all formats combined.
| Player | Span | International Games |
| Ross Taylor | 2006 – 2020 | 438 |
| Daniel Vettori | 1997 – 2015 | 437 |
| Brendon McCullum | 2002 – 2016 | 432 |
| Stephen Fleming | 1994 – 2008 | 395 |
| Martin Guptill | 2009 – 2020 | 324 |
Taylor has thus far featured in 104 Tests, 232 in ODIs and 102 T20I games for New Zealand. Moreover, his 17,838 international runs are the most for any NZ player at the international level in all the formats combined. The next best in the list is 15,289 by their former captain Stephen Fleming.
“At the start of my career, I was happy to play just one or two games. But I have come this far, it’s nice. I didn’t really expect much,” said a very modest Ross Taylor on the massive achievement he has achieved at the international level for his country.
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