The storied histories of two traditional cricket powerhouses have come together in the new trophy that be awarded to the winner of their test series.
Before the first match of their 2024 test series kicked off in Christchurch, New Zealand, in late November, England and New Zealand unveiled the new Crowe-Thorpe Trophy, which goes to the winner of test series between the two nations.
The trophy eschews the usual metalwork and is instead made of two cricket bats: one used by New Zealand cricketer Martin Crowe to score a century against England in 1994, and another used by English batsman Graham Thorpe to score two centuries against the Kiwis in 1997. Designed by Māori artist David Ngawati, the bats are shaped into a single trophy with a flowing Indigenous design carved into it, placed on an auburn wood base and inlaid with circular pieces of jade — or inanga pounamu, in Māori — on either side.
“It’s a pinnacle, the highest mountain or the highest viewpoint, and then the very base of it is the foundation of them being able to get to the highest point,” Ngawati told The Guardian. “So that incorporates in particular their family members on each side, their clubs, their community, everyone who supported them is the foundation for them to be able to go up the mountain, walk the path towards the highest achievement. The pounamu for us is the really top place, the treasured gem in the mountain.”
Ngawati also told The Guardian that the process of creating the trophy took roughly a month, beginning with discussion with New Zealand Cricket about the design. The national cricket board then liaised with the families of the two cricketers whose bats make up the trophy, and once they were procured, Ngawati set to creating the trophy.
“It was a long process for New Zealand Cricket to talk with Graham’s wife around getting the bat,” Ngawati said. Thorpe passed away in August 2024. “They’re still in the grieving process, right? It’s still early times for them in this. We’re just really thankful for them to entrust in us, to be able to create a wonderful trophy and tribute to them both.
“There’s a lot of depth in it, there’s a lot of thought. There’s a lot of conversation that can come through. I’m a bit of a hermit so I sat down with this trophy and went through a really long process with it. I received these two bats and I have to think of them as being weapons really, the weapons they used to fight the different countries. To have those bats, there’s a process in that too. I talk to them, I feel the energy that’s there, I can smell the sweat and my senses start feeling.”
Crowe passed away in 2016 after a battle with lymphoma.
Ngawati also created the Tangiwai Shield, which goes to the winner of the test series between New Zealand and South Africa, and he told The Guardian that he’s working on other projects with Cricket New Zealand.
England will take the Crowe-Thorpe Trophy back across the pond with them after winning the first two test matches in the three-match series, the first by eight wickets and the second in Wellington by 323 runs. The third match gets underway on Friday, December 13, at Setton Park in Hamilton, New Zealand.
