When Canterbury take the field in Hamilton for their Ford Trophy fixture this afternoon, all-rounder Andrew Ellis will become the first New Zealander to bring up 100 appearances in all three formats of the game for his province.

Since making his List-A debut in 2004 against Central Districts, Ellis has been a vital player for Canterbury in all formats. As a genuine all-rounder his tricky medium pacers and big hitting ability has seen him tailor his game to the shorter formats in recent seasons, whilst his experience has been vital within the squad.

Whilst not an overly outspoken character, Ellis tends to lead by example. He has an amazing work ethic and a dogged determination to succeed, which showed after early setbacks in his career. After making his debut in 2004 Ellis played several seasons for Canterbury but endured several stress fractures to his lower back early in his career. This had an impact on his performance, but after receiving surgery he came back better than before and his patience was rewarded with a call up to the BLACKCAPS ODI and T20 squads against Zimbabwe in February 2012.

Throughout the Canterbury years, Ellis has enjoyed plenty of success, most recently lifting the Ford Trophy and Plunket Shield in 2016/17.

“Winning the one day competition a couple of years ago was a pretty special moment. It had been over a decade between titles, so to lift the (Ford) trophy and the Plunket Shield in the same year, while captaining the side was about as good as it gets”.

When asked about the special milestone, Ellis had a proud sense of achievement.

“It goes without saying that it’s pretty special to bring up 100 games in each format. I don’t think it’s something I would have envisioned when I started out, that’s for sure”.

“When I look back over the years, I realise I must of done something right to still be going now and it’s certainly nice to be part of”.

“Being able to have that time to contribute to the legacy of Canterbury Cricket is the most important thing and what I’m most proud of”.

With just under 2,500 one day runs at an average of 30 with the bat and having taken 139 wickets with the ball, Ellis has been an important figure in the Canterbury line up for some years and will be looking to add to those figures throughout the rest of the 2019/20 season.