New Zealand cricket team in Australia in 1980–81

International cricket tour

The New Zealand national cricket team toured Australia in the 1980–81 season and played 3 Test matches. Australia won the series 2–0 with one match drawn. This was followed by a one-day series, which included the match that featured the underarm incident.

Test series summary

First Test

28–30 November 1980
(5-day match)
Scorecard

New Zealand	v	Australia
225 (70.1 overs) GP Howarth 65 (119) JD Higgs 4/59 (16.1 overs)		305 (115.5 overs) GM Wood 111 (229) BL Cairns 5/87 (38.5 overs)
142 (41.1 overs) BA Edgar 51 (88) RJ Hadlee 51* (57) DK Lillee 6/53 (15 overs)		63/0 (21.3 overs) GM Wood 32* (65)

Australia won by 10 wickets
Brisbane Cricket Ground, Woolloongabba, Brisbane
Umpires: RC Bailhache and MW Johnson
Player of the match: GM Wood (AUS)

Australia won the toss and elected to field.
The match was scheduled for five days but completed in three.
GF Lawson (AUS), and JG Bracewell and IDS Smith (both NZ) made their Test debuts.

Second Test

12–14 December 1980
(5-day match)
Scorecard

New Zealand	v	Australia
196 (73.5 overs) JV Coney 71 (165) DK Lillee 5/63 (23.5 overs)		265 (81.1 overs) RW Marsh 91 (161) RJ Hadlee 5/87 (27 overs)
121 (48.1 overs) WK Lees 25* (55) JD Higgs 4/25 (8 overs)		55/2 (22.1 overs) J Dyson 25* (75) RJ Hadlee 2/20 (11.1 overs)

Australia won by 8 wickets
Western Australia Cricket Association Ground, Perth
Umpires: AR Crafter and DG Weser
Player of the match: RW Marsh (AUS)

Australia won the toss and elected to field.
The match was scheduled for five days but completed in three.

Third Test

26–30 December 1980
(5-day match)
Scorecard

Australia	v	New Zealand
321 (121.3 overs) KD Walters 107 (206) JV Coney 3/28 (12.3 overs)		317 (108.2 overs) GP Howarth 65 (124) RM Hogg 4/60 (26.2 overs)
188 (87.2 overs) GS Chappell 78 (221) RJ Hadlee 6/57 (27.2 overs)		128/6 (54 overs) JG Wright 44 (115) GS Chappell 2/7 (7 overs)

Match drawn
Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne
Umpires: RC Bailhache and AR Crafter
Player of the match: RJ Hadlee (NZ)

New Zealand won the toss and elected to field.

External sources

CricketArchive – tour summaries

Annual reviews

Playfair Cricket Annual 1981
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack 1981

Non Trans-Tasman Trophy – Australia v New Zealand Test series
1945–46 1973–74 1973–74 1976–77 1980–81 1981–82

Test and LOI tours
Afghanistan	2021–22
Bangladesh	2003 2008
England	1876–77 1878–79 1881–82 1882–83 1884–85 1886–87 1887–88 1891–92 1894–95 1897–98 1901–02 1903–04 1907–08 1911–12 1920–21 1924–25 1928–29 1932–33 1936–37 1946–47 1950–51 1954–55 1958–59 1962–63 1965–66 1970–71 1974–75 1977 1978–79 1979–80 1982–83 1986–87 1987–88 1990–91 1994–95 1998–99 2002–03 2006–07 2010–11 2013–14 2017–18 2021–22 2022–23
India	1947–48 1967–68 1977–78 1980–81 1985–86 1991–92 1999–2000 2003–04 2007–08 2011–12 2014–15 2015–16 2018–19 2020–21 2024–25
New Zealand	1973–74 1980–81 1982–83 1985–86 1987–88 1989–90 1993–94 1997–98 2001–02 2004–05 2008–09 2011–12 2015–16 2016–17 2019–20 2022–23
Pakistan	1964–65 1972–73 1976–77 1978–79 1981–82 1983–84 1989–90 1992–93 1995–96 1996–97 1999–2000 2002 2004–05 2009–10 2016–17 2019–20 2023–24
South Africa	1910–11 1931–32 1952–53 1963–64 1971–72 (cancelled) 1993–94 1997–98 2000 2001–02 2005–06 2008–09 2012–13 2014–15 2016–17 2018–19 2022–23
Sri Lanka	1987–88 1989–90 1995–96 2004 2007–08 2010–11 2012–13 2016–17 2018–19 2019–20 2021–22
West Indies	1930–31 1951–52 1960–61 1968–69 1975–76 1979–80 1981–82 1984–85 1988–89 1992–93 1995–96 1996–97 2000–01 2005–06 2009–10 2012–13 2015–16 2020–21 2022–23 2023–24
Zimbabwe	1994–95 2003–04 2022

Tournaments hosted
World Cup	1992 2015
T20 World Cup	2022
Tri-series	1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2011–12 2014–15 2017–18
Other multi-team tournaments	1985 1987

Other tours
Afghanistan	2014–15
Australian Forces	1919–20 1945–46
English	1861–62 1863–64 1873–74 1902–03 1922–23 1929–30 1935–36 1979–80
England Lions	2012–13 2021
Fijian	1907–08
Ireland	2014–15
Multi-national	1971–72 2005–06
Nepal	2023–24
New Zealand	1898–99 1913–14 1925–26 1927–28 1937–38 1953–54 1961–62 1967–68 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1974–75
PNG	2014–15
Scotland	2014–15
Sri Lanka	1982–83
UAE	2014–15
World Series Cricket (West Indies & World XI)	1977-78 1978-79