Bob Cunis
A stalwart New Zealand fast-medium bowler whose relentless accuracy and later coaching acumen helped shape the nation's cricketing identity.
1941–2008 (age 67)·New Zealand cricketer·Birthday: January 5·The Silent Generation
Biography
Bob Cunis was the workhorse of New Zealand cricket during a period when the team fought for respect on the world stage. With a classic sideways-on action and metronomic line and length, he wasn't about express pace but about persistent, nagging pressure. His 20 Test matches in the 1960s and early 70s were battles of attrition, often on pitches that offered little help, where his role was to tie down an end and build pressure for his fellow bowlers. This deep understanding of the game's mechanics naturally led to a second act. In the late 1980s, Cunis took the helm as coach of the national team, steering them through a transitional era. He was a mentor to a new generation, imparting the values of discipline and strategic thinking he had lived as a player, cementing his place as a durable figure in New Zealand's cricket lore.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Bob was born in 1941, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Bob Was Born
The biggest hits of 1941
#1 Movie
Sergeant York
Best Picture
How Green Was My Valley
Bob's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1941Born
Pearl Harbor attack brings the US into WWII
Gas: $0.19/galHome: $3,060Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Chattanooga Choo Choo" — Glenn MillerBest Picture: How Green Was My Valley
1946Started school
United Nations holds its first General Assembly
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $5,150Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Prisoner of Love" — Perry ComoBest Picture: The Best Years of Our Lives
1954Became a teenager
Brown v. Board of Education desegregates US schools
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $8,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Little Things Mean a Lot" — Kitty KallenBest Picture: On the Waterfront
1957Could drive
Sputnik launches the Space Age
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $10,550Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"All Shook Up" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: The Bridge on the River Kwai
1959Could vote
Fidel Castro takes power in Cuba
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $12,400Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"The Battle of New Orleans" — Johnny HortonBest Picture: Ben-Hur
1962Turned 21
Cuban Missile Crisis brings the world to the brink
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,800Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Stranger on the Shore" — Acker BilkBest Picture: Lawrence of Arabia
1971Turned 30
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1981Turned 40
MTV launches; first Space Shuttle flight; AIDS identified
Gas: $1.31/galHome: $52,300Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Bette Davis Eyes" — Kim CarnesBest Picture: Chariots of Fire
1991Turned 50
Soviet Union dissolves; World Wide Web goes public
Gas: $1.14/galHome: $82,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" — Bryan AdamsBest Picture: The Silence of the Lambs
2001Turned 60
September 11 attacks transform the world
Gas: $1.46/galHome: $126,400Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Hanging by a Moment" — LifehouseBest Picture: A Beautiful Mind
2008Died at 67
Barack Obama elected first Black US president; financial crisis
Gas: $3.27/galHome: $153,100Min wage: $6.55/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Low" — Flo RidaBest Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
Key Achievements
- Played 20 Test matches for New Zealand as a pace bowler between 1964 and 1972, a mainstay of the attack during that era.
- Served as the head coach of the New Zealand national cricket team from 1987 to 1990.
- Took 51 wickets in his Test career, with a best innings figure of 5/31 against India in 1969.
Did You Know?
His son, Stephen Cunis, played first-class cricket for Canterbury.
He shared a Test match dressing room with some of New Zealand's greats, including Glenn Turner and Sir Richard Hadlee.
The phrase 'neither one thing nor the other' is sometimes humorously referred to as 'a bit Cunis' in New Zealand cricket circles, playing on his name.
“My job was to put the ball on the seam and let the pitch do the talking.”
