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Tearful Black Cap on personal toll of Cyclone Gabrielle

February 23, 2023

Black Caps bowler Blair Tickner has been home in Hawke's Bay between Tests to help with the clean up. (Source: 1News)

Blair Tickner will always remember his first Test match, but not necessarily for cricketing reasons.

As the Black Caps bowler earned his first wickets for his nation, his mind was on his father's home in the small town of Awatoto, near Napier.

"Luckily New Zealand Cricket released me and Will Young to go home and help out for two days, my father's house has been fully destroyed," says Tickner.

"It was good to get back and help them out."

The devastation clear to see on Tickner's face, visibly upset at the toll it's had on the Hawke's Bay community.

"Obviously, you grow up there as a kid… it's just crazy to be honest, it's hard to talk about to be honest," says the 29-year-old.

"The only thing I kept going back to was my family saying it was the only bright light at the moment."

But being home and able to be near family has been good for the new Black Cap.

He's been able to combine with New Zealand Cricket to help set up a fundraiser in next month's first one-day international between New Zealand and Sri Lanka at Eden Park.

NZ Cricket and ANZ have teamed up to raise money for the Red Cross Disaster Fund.

All ticket proceeds aregoing to cyclone relief while ANZ has already pledged $1 million, while public donations are also opened.

Tickner might need to also organise some help to get his dad's equipment out of a sticky situation.

"Luckily, my dad's got a hire business, so we've been clearing neighbours' stuff using the forklift and loader. I actually got my old man's loader stuck, hopefully he doesn't watch this," he said.

"It's about a metre in mud at the moment. I probably shouldn't have driven around the neighbour's yard, but they said it wasn't that deep and I got it stuck, so sorry about that, dad."

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