Timothy Grant Southee (born 11 December 1988) is a former New Zealand international cricketer who has captained New Zealand cricket team in all formats of the game. He is a right-arm medium-fast bowler and a hard-hitting lower order batsman. The third New Zealand bowler to take 300 Test wickets, he was one of the country's youngest cricketers, debuting at the age of 19 in February 2008. On his Test debut against England he took 5 wickets and made 77 off 40 balls in the second innings. He plays for Northern Districts in the Plunket Shield, Ford Trophy and Super Smash as well as Northland in the Hawke Cup. He was named as New Zealand's captain for the first T20I against West Indies in place of Kane Williamson, who was rested for that game. The Blackcaps won that match by 47 runs. Southee was a member of the New Zealand team that won the 2019–2021 ICC World Test Championship. Southee's Test batting strike rate of 82.68 is the third highest among batsmen with a minimum of 2000 career runs. He was also a part of the New Zealand squads to finish as runners-up in two Cricket World Cup finals in 2015 and 2019.
Southee is known for his ability to generate late outswing at a brisk pace, and later with off cutting slower balls almost like a faster off-spinner on a damp wicket and death bowling. He was the third-highest wicket-taker at the 2011 ICC World Cup (18 wickets at 17.33). He also impressed at the 2015 ICC World Cup, taking 7 wickets in a round robin league match against England. This performance was named Wisden's ODI spell of the decade. Southee announced his retirement from Test cricket in 2024, finishing with 98 sixes (equal fourth highest) and 391 wickets (third highest for New Zealand) in the format.
Early and personal life Southee was born in Whangārei, New Zealand, and grew up in Northland. He was educated at Whangārei Boys' High School and King's College, Auckland. While at school, he excelled at both cricket and rugby, playing representative rugby for the Auckland Secondary School and Northern Region teams.
Southee is married to Brya Fahy. The couple have two daughters.
International youth representative Southee played under-19 cricket for New Zealand from 2006 to 2009. His under-19 career included 13 one-day matches – 10 at ICC Under-19 World Cups – and a drawn three-match Youth Test series against India in early 2007. His last youth appearance was at the 2008 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup, where he was player of the tournament.
Southee was 17 years old when he debuted in the 2006 ICC Under-19 World Cup on 5 February, against Bangladesh in Colombo, Sri Lanka. He also played against Pakistan, Ireland, the United States and Nepal in that tournament. He ended with 5 wickets at an average of 38.8, and 113 runs at 22.6.Statistics – Tim Southee at the 2006 ICC Under-19 World Cup (on ESPNcricinfo) New Zealand lost the Plate Final to Nepal.Scorecard – Under-19 Plate Final, Nepal def. NZ, 18 February 2006
In 2007, Southee played his only three Youth Tests when New Zealand hosted India. In the second match of the series, which New Zealand won, he took 6–36 and 6–56.Scorecard: NZ U-19 v India U19, Dunedin (New Zealand), 27–30 January 2007 He finished the drawn series with 20 wickets at an average of 18.2.Statistics – Tim Southee Youth Test career (on ESPNcricinfo)
By the time Southee appeared at his second ICC Under-19 World Cup, in Malaysia in 2008, he had already played two full Twenty20 internationals for New Zealand. His bowling saw him named the player of the tournament. He took 5/11 in New Zealand's first match, against Zimbabwe, and went on to take 17 wickets in five matches, averaging only 6.64 and conceding only 2.52 runs an over.ESPNcricinfo StatsGuru – Tim Southee at the 2007/8 ICC Under-19 World Cup Only South Africa's Wayne Parnell took more wickets (18), although he played one more match.ESPNcricinfo Statsguru Records – Most wickets at ICC Under-19 World Cup 2007/8 Southee's last under-19 appearance was New Zealand's semi-final loss to eventual champions India, a rain-affected match in which he took 4/29.
Within a month, Southee played in his debut test match. The youth squads he played in included other future internationals Kane Williamson, Martin Guptill, Trent Boult, Corey Anderson, Hamish Rutherford, and Hamish Bennett.
International career Southee began his international career as one of the youngest ever to feature for New Zealand. He has become a regular member of the international team in all three formats – Twenty20, one-day internationals, and test matches.
First Twenty20 matches for New Zealand New Zealand's selectors and coaches took great interest in Southee while he was still playing youth cricket. In 2007 national bowling coach Dayle Hadlee took him to India. Hadlee later said that while there Dennis Lillee had compared Southee's talent to that of Glenn McGrath when he was young. Hadlee, brother of New Zealand Cricket Selection Manager Sir Richard Hadlee, also said that he'd been "whispering in Black Caps coach John Bracewell's ear about the possibility of taking Southee on the upcoming tour of England."
While in the selectors' eye Southee took 6/68 in the first innings of a first class match against Auckland in early December (the innings ended on his 19th birthday).Scorecard – Auckland v Northern Districts first class match, Auckland, 10–12 December 2007 (on ESPNcricinfo) Within a fortnight he was picked to play for a New Zealand XI team in a Twenty20 match against a Bangladesh team on 23 December 2007. The game, played at Northern Districts' home ground of Seddon Park in Hamilton, was a charity match for cyclone relief in Bangladesh, and not a full international. Southee bowled three overs and took 1/31.Scorecard – Bangladesh v NZXI in Hamilton, New Zealand, 23 December 2007
On 30 January 2008, Southee was named in the New Zealand squad for two Twenty20 International games against England. Selection manager Sir Richard Hadlee said:
Why delay producing a player of some talent? Perhaps I could compare him with Brendon McCullum when he started – he had a lot of potential. It might take a lot of time for Tim to find his feet but why wait two or three years when someone is in a special category? The feedback we're getting is that this guy has got it.
Southee's international debut took place two years to the day after he had first played under-19 cricket for New Zealand, on 5 February 2008 in Auckland. He took 1/38.Scorecard – New Zealand v England Twenty20 in Auckland, New Zealand, 5 February 2008 In the second match, Southee was New Zealand's best bowler with figures of 2/22 from four overs.Scorecard – New Zealand v England Twenty20 in Christchurch, New Zealand, 7 February 2008
Most of the New Zealand squad stayed together for the first three one day matches that followed, but Southee rejoined the national Under-19 team for the 2008 Under-19 Cricket World Cup in Malaysia.
Test match debut England were still touring New Zealand when Southee returned home from the 2008 Under-19 World Cup as player of the tournament. The one-day series was over but the three-match test was about to begin. When injury ruled Kyle Mills out of the third Test match, in Napier, Southee was added to the squad and made his Test match debut on 22 March 2008. Aged only 19 years and 102 days, he was New Zealand's seventh-youngest test debutant.
He had an immediate impact in the first day, dismissing Michael Vaughan and Andrew Strauss in his second and third overs, and then later claiming the wicket of Kevin Pietersen. On the second day he took two more wickets and completed a debut five-wicket haul, finishing with 5–55. During New Zealand's second innings, chasing 553, Southee hit New Zealand's fastest half-century in 29 balls. His innings, which ended on 77* from just 40 balls, included nine sixes and four fours.Scorecard – New Zealand v England, Napier, 22–26 March 2008
2008 season (northern summer) At the end of the 2007–08 season a survey of New Zealand's first class cricketers named Southee the country's most promising cricketer and in April he was awarded one of New Zealand Cricket's 20 player contracts, placing him among the players with "the greatest likely future value to the Black Caps in the next 12 months".New Zealand Cricket announcement: NZC announces 2008/09 contracted players list
His rise was reflected in his selection for his first full international tour, to England, Ireland and Scotland from May to July. He played a single test match at Lord's, taking 0/59 in a drawn game, and seven one-day internationals (five against England and one each against the other two hosts). In the ODIs he took 16 wickets, averaging 16.93.Statistics – Tim Southee in ODIs, May–July 2008 (on ESPNcricinfo)
In October New Zealand visited Bangladesh to play three ODIs and two tests. Southee only played the ODIs, taking a combined two wickets for 114. Before the tests captain Daniel Vettori said that there was one position in the team for either Iain O'Brien or Southee. The position went to O'Brien.
2008–09 New Zealand season
Through the 2008–09 summer Southee competed for a place in the New Zealand team with more experienced bowlers like Iain O'Brien and Ian Butler. Game-changing performances like the previous summer's five-wicket bags eluded him, though he played 19 matches for his country.
New Zealand's summer began with a short tour to Australia for two test matches. Southee took a combined 5/225 in those matches, going wicketless in the second. Australia won the series easily.Scorecard – Australia v New Zealand, Brisbane, 20–23 November (on ESPNCricfo)Scorecard – Australia v New Zealand, 29 Nov-1 Dec 2008, Adelaide (on ESPNcricinfo) Later in the summer New Zealand returned to Australia for five ODIs and a Twenty20 match.
The first inbound tourists of the summer were the West Indies, beginning with a test series for which Southee was dropped. He returned to Northern Districts for the first time since the previous season. The national team picked Southee again for two Twenty20s, across which he took 2/83,Filtered statistics – Tim Southee in T20s v West Indies, December 2008 (on ESPNcricinfo) and five ODIs (5/180, with two matches being drawn due to rain).Filtered statistics – Tim Southee in ODIs v West Indies, December 2008 – January 2009 (on ESPNcricinfo.com)
In February 2009 New Zealand visited Australia for a five-match Chappell–Hadlee Trophy ODI series and a single Twenty20. Southee played all the one-day matches but only took three wickets, averaging 84.33.Sstatistics – Tim Southee in ODIs v Australia, February 2009 (on ESPNcricinfo) The series was drawn 2–2 and Australia retained the Chappell–Hadlee Trophy. The Twenty20 match, which was a 1-run win to Australia, saw Southee take 1/31.Scorecard – Australia v New Zealand Twenty20, Sydney, 15 February 2009 (on ESPNcricinfo)
New Zealand finished the summer hosting India for two Twenty20s, five ODIs and three tests. With Kyle Mills injured Southee played both Twenty20 matches, taking 1/42 and 1/36.Scorecard – NZ v India Twenty20, Christchurch, 25 February 2009 (on ESPNcricinfo)Scorecard – NZ v India Twenty20, Wellington, 27 February 2009 (on ESPNcricinfo) New Zealand named a 12-man squad for the first three ODIs with Mills returning alongside Southee and fellow seam bowlers Iain O'Brien and Ian Butler. Initially, Southee and Butler were seen as competing for a starting spot. Butler played all three matches but Southee replaced Iain O'Brien in the third.New Zealand v India ODI, Christchurch, 8 March 2009 (ESPNcricinfo match commentary) He was hit for 105 runs without taking a wicketScorecard – New Zealand v India ODI, Christchurch, 8 March 2009 (on ESPNcricinfo) and then dropped from the squad.