Lou Vincent, the former New Zealand opener, received a special cap earlier this month to mark his 100th ODI for the Kiwis. The right-handed batter played his 100th ODI for the country almost 17 years ago.
He received his cap by New Zealand's legendary allrounder Sir Richard Hadlee in Auckland during a small gathering attended by the former's kith and kin.
"It was a lovely way to be acknowledged for my cricketing career, and to be able to use the night as an avenue to say thank you very, very much to people who've been by my side through the great times and the tricky times," Vincent told The Post. "It was a really memorable, special night with some lovely words spoken."
Vincent, 45, was banned for life by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2014 for his involvement in corrupt activities in county cricket.
The ECB revised the punishment in December 2023 allowing him to associate himself with domestic cricket.
"The past is the past," Vincent said. "It was powerful that I had such huge support for the application for the ban to be appealed and there was no opposition from the ECB, they fully respected the work I'd done behind the scenes over the last few years and using my experiences to help educate the next generation of players."
New Zealand Cricket (NZC) Scott Weenik said that Vincent has "done his penance" and it's time for people to move on from what happened in the past.
"The reality is, you can't forget what he actually did and he would be the first to admit that, but he's done his penance and no one has done more to fight match-fixing than he has by being so open and telling everything that he knew," Weenink said. "When the opportunity came, it was really the least we could do to present him with his cap."
Vincent played 23 Tests and 102 ODIs for the Kiwis. He aggregated 1332 runs in the red-ball format and 2413 runs in the ODI circuit. Vincent scored three Tests and as many ODI tons. He struck nine half-centuries in Tests and 11 in the ODI format.
He is blessed with a son and two daughters and is leading a "simple life" with his family and near and dear ones.
"Life moves on, and my life has moved on now. I've been blessed with a little son, and I've got two daughters who are teenagers," Vincent said. "To have the opportunity to start a family again and be settled in the far north and have the beach life - a simple life - this is all I'm focused on now."
