Why Tim Southee Will Be the Star Player for New Zealand vs. England

Tim Southee is the archetypal English seamer. Tall, slippery in pace and capable of getting late movement in the air, he is a bowler who could have been born in the Shires.

Instead, though, the New Zealander will be looking to heighten the gloom around English cricket during his side's short tour that sees them play two Tests, a five-match ODI series and a one-off Twenty20 international.

They open up against England at Lord's, a venue that visiting bowlers can find tricky to get used to.

There is the slope to come to terms with, not to mention the sheer weight of history you feel when stepping out on to one of the most famous sporting venues in the world.

Yet the fresh-faced Southee—who looks like the kind of man that any set of parents would love their daughter to bring home to meet them—should relish the opportunity to play there.

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The last time he visited the home of cricket, he recorded career-best match figures.

He claimed 10 for 108 in the series opener two years ago, with his six-for in the second innings setting up the opportunity for the tourists to go on and win the game. 

That victory, however, never materialised due to a dreadful batting collapse from the Kiwis: They were steamrollered for 68 to lose what had been a tight match by the substantial margin of 170 runs.

Still, Southee had become just the second New Zealander to take 10 wickets in a match at Lord's (the other being Dion Nash), as well as putting his name on the illustrious honours board with his haul of six for 50. 

The 26-year-old may not have Test statistics that dazzle—he has taken 136 wickets in 39 appearances at an average of 30.61—but take a deeper look at his career numbers and you see how much he has improved.

He made his debut at the age of 19 (versus England at Napier), and immediately marked himself out at the highest level with five wickets in the first innings.

Yet from 2008 to 2011 his performances were inconsistent. He was having to learn his trade on the job, and there were growing pains along the way.

However, from 2012 onwards he has been superb for his country. Take a look at his year-by-year breakdowns, per ESPN Cricinfo:

Year	Tests	Wickets	Average
2008	4	10	42.30
2009	2	5	55.60
2010	5	14	38.92
2011	4	11	42.36
2012	6	25	22.64
2013	8	36	24.94
2014	9	33	26.03

He certainly seems to like playing against England, and not just in the longer format.

While Trent Boult was the star performer with the ball for the Black Caps at this year's Cricket World Cup, it was Southee who destroyed Eoin Morgan's England side in a group-stage fixture in Wellington.

He picked up seven for 33, including a spell of five wickets for eight runs. Nick Hoult wrote in his report for the Telegraph: "Southee bowled wide of the crease to maximise any movement, yorking and out-thinking England's batsmen. His first spell knocked over the top order but it was his second that was so damaging."

Fresh from stints in the Indian Premier League, Boult and Southee will be in tandem again for the first Test, which gets underway on May 21.

They should relish the chance to face an England side with a stand-in coach in Paul Farbrace, a captain in Alastair Cook who is seemingly always under pressure and a middle order missing the presence of Kevin Pietersen, who—in case you haven't heard—won't be selected this summer.

Forget about the Ashes later this year; England have their hands full dealing with Southee and the rest of the New Zealand side first.