Ewen John Chatfield is a former New Zealand cricketer who played 43 Tests and 114 One Day Internationals. A medium-pace bowler, his chief weapon was his accuracy, giving him economical bowling figures, although he occasionally would come in for punishment in the late stages of limited overs matches due to a lack of variation in his line and length.
With the ball, Chatfield distinguished himself with efforts against the West Indies, the leading cricketing side of the day, on tour in 1984/85 and in the home series which New Zealand drew in 1986/87. He was also a member of the New Zealand sides which achieved the country's first Test series wins against England and Australia at home and away. Chatfield spent much of his career as the bowling partner to Sir Richard Hadlee. Coincidentally, the pair share the same birthday, though Chatfield is one year Hadlee's senior.
Head injury
Chatfield is also noted for being seriously injured on the cricket field, in the First Test against England in the 1974-75 season at Eden Park, Auckland. England were at the end of a long and difficult tour in which they had been defeated in the Ashes by Australia, chiefly by the Australian fast bowlers Jeff Thomson and Dennis Lillee. Chatfield, a number 11 batsman, was holding up England with a last wicket partnership with his future captain, Geoff Howarth. English fast bowlerPeter Lever decided to test Chatfield with a bouncer. At the time helmets and other now common protective gear were not in use. The ball deflected from Chatfield's bat and struck him on the temple, rendering him unconscious and not breathing. The English team's physiotherapist Bernard Thomas was the first to realise what had happened: Chatfield had swallowed his tongue. Thomas flicked it back into place and managed to revive Chatfield with heart massage and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. Lever was distraught; Chatfield later joked that when he was visited by Lever in hospital, "he looked worse than I did". A couple of years later helmets were introduced into cricket and Chatfield wore one thereafter.
Late career
A classic no.11 batsmen, In one of the most memorable tests in New Zealand cricket history, he accompanied Wellington team mate Jeremy Coney in a partnership to defeat Pakistan at Carisbrook, Dunedin, in the 1984/85 Test series. It was technically not a last wicket win, as Lance Cairns was still available to bat, but Cairns was severely concussed at the time and essentially incapable of batting, making Chatfield his side's last hope for a series win. Chatfield managed his highest Test score, an unbeaten 21. Such was Coney's faith in his partner that Chatfield ended up facing 84 deliveries during their stand as opposed to Coney's 48. In the 1990 New Year Honours, Chatfield was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire, for services to cricket.
After cricket
Since retiring from first-class cricket, Chatfield has had a variety of jobs. He coached the Hutt Valley association until they merged with Wellington, worked in a chip shop, was a courier and drove a van for a dairy. He also mowed lawns, and in 2009 was working as a taxi driver in Wellington. In 2020, the 95-year old Basin Reserve Museum Stand was reopened and the Old Pavillion Stand therein was renamed for Chatfield.
