PM Luxon: Shared Cricket Passion Drives Partnership

New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon highlighted cricket as one of the strongest cultural links between India and New Zealand while underlining the significance of the newly announced Sports Joint Action Plan, aimed at expanding cooperation across multiple sectors.

New Zealand and India bookend the Indo-Pacific, but distance is no barrier to us working together to grow our economies.

That’s what we’re doing through our free trade agreement, which will eliminate tariffs on 57% of everything we sell to India on day one. pic.twitter.com/hA4MZK7BkB

— Christopher Luxon (@chrisluxonmp) July 11, 2026

Speaking during a gala lunch held in honour of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Luxon recalled his memorable experience of playing street cricket with children from the STAIRS Foundation in Delhi.

"Cricket will always be a special connection, and New Zealanders know the passion India brings to the game," Luxon said.
Sharing an amusing anecdote, he revealed that his team featured Indian cricket legend Kapil Dev, while the New Zealand side included former internationals Ajaz Patel and Ross Taylor.

"I joked with Ross Taylor about the possibility of the great Ross Taylor being bowled out by a 13-year-old. Lo and behold, on the very next ball, he was bowled out by an 11-year-old Indian bowling at 110 kilometres an hour," Luxon said, drawing laughter from the audience.

He said the moment perfectly reflected the enthusiasm and competitive spirit that define the cricketing relationship between the two nations.

Luxon also stressed the importance of the Sports Joint Action Plan signed between India and New Zealand, saying it would deepen collaboration in coaching, youth sports, women's and girls' sports, high-performance sports, sports science, technology, tourism, and business.

According to Luxon, the initiative will transform the two countries' shared passion for sports into broader and more meaningful cooperation, strengthening people-to-people ties and creating new opportunities across multiple sectors.