Martin Snedden

Martin Colin Snedden (born 23 November 1958) is a former New Zealand cricketer, who played 25 cricket tests, and 93 One Day Internationals, between 1980 and 1990.

Snedden was born in 1958 in Auckland.

His uncle, Colin Snedden, played one Test for New Zealand; his father, Warwick Snedden, and grandfather, Nessie Snedden, both also played first-class cricket.

His brother, Patrick Snedden, is a company director and philanthropist.

Snedden was educated at Rosmini College in Auckland, and played in the New Zealand secondary schools cricket team alongside Jeff Crowe and the Bracewell brothers, John and Brendon.

He was a member of New Zealand's seam bowling attack, alongside Richard Hadlee and Ewen Chatfield, throughout its golden age in the 1980s.

During 1980–81 Australia Tri-Nation Series, Snedden was believed to have made a fair catch by the TV replay footage at the boundary ropes.

However, the on-field umpires ruled that Greg Chappell was not out and he went on to score 90 runs.

Snedden, a lawyer by profession, was for some years the chief executive officer of New Zealand Cricket.

He studied law at the University of Otago, where he met his wife, Annie, also a law student, and they married in about 1983.

Snedden's best Test figures were 5 for 68 in New Zealand's victory over West Indies in Christchurch in 1986–87.

He was the first bowler to concede 100 runs in a One Day International with figures of 12–1–105–2 from a 60-over match; it remained the record for most runs conceded until surpassed by Mick Lewis in March 2006.

Snedden was usually a lower-order batsman though he once scored 64 opening the innings in a One Day International.

He also represented Auckland in New Zealand provincial cricket.

He left NZC to head the 2011 Rugby World Cup Organising Team.

Snedden was made a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2012 New Year Honours, for services to sporting administration.

The couple went on to have four children, including Michael, who made his first-class cricket debut for Wellington in October 2019, and became the first fourth-generation cricketer to play first-class cricket in New Zealand.