His cricket education was honed at Wellington College, which he attended from 1953-57. He was a brilliant all-round student, both in the classroom and on the sports field where he excelled in rugby, athletics and cricket.
Hastings made his first-class debut for Wellington as a 17-year-old in 1957-58. He played briefly for Central Districts in 1960-61 when he moved to Blenheim with the Shell Company, before joining The Christchurch Press in 1961 when he played for Canterbury. He captained the New Zealand Colts in 1959-60.
He scored 7686 runs including 15 centuries and 38 50s in 163 first-class matches. His highest score was 226 not out.
Despite his undoubted ability, Hastings was not selected for New Zealand until 1969 against the formidable West Indies team which included Wes Hall and Charlie Griffith.
His non-selection was possibly due to an inconsistency. There was no doubt he was a batsman full of handsome shots, but his Achilles heel was he was a nervous starter. Once "in", of course, he was at his very best dominating the crease and tailoring his batting according to the situation.
With age came batting maturity, and several of his test innings were memorable and important: his 62 not out which saw New Zealand through to victory in Wellington; his 117 not out which saved the third test in Christchurch; his 105 in the West Indies on the 1971-72 tour and his world-record partnership of 151, with Richard Collinge, against Pakistan in Auckland in 1973 which stood until 2013; and his very important 46 as he partnered Glenn Turner in that famous victory over Australia at Lancaster Park in 1972-73.
His international career of 31 tests and 11 ODIs, and which included four centuries, ended in 1976.
Hastings served as an ICC match referee from 2000-02 and oversaw 10 tests and 18 ODIs. He served a term as the president of Canterbury Cricket in the early 2000s and as president of the Canterbury Park Trotting Club, which underpinned his passion for racing pacers.
He worked for The Press for 38 years, ending as assistant general manager. After retirement he formed a company, along with former New Zealand team-mate Graeme Vivian, producing artificial sports field surfaces. Hastings died on October 7, aged 84. — Mike Fisher
