Kane Williamson’s ex-teammate betrays New Zealand, joins new international cricket team

The 34-year-old top-order Tom Bruce, who is an ex-teammate of the modern-day great Kane Williamson, has left the New Zealand National Cricket Team and joined a new team.

Tom Bruce has joined the Scotland National Cricket Team and will be seen playing for his new team in the Cricket World Cup League 2 matches in the Canada leg.

Kane Williamson's ex-teammate Tom Bruce played 17 T20Is for New Zealand.

Tom Bruce got his New Zealand T20I call-up after his impressive performances with the bat for Central Districts in Super Smash.

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He made his T20I debut under the leadership of Kane Williamson in the series opening clash against the Bangladesh National Cricket Team in Napier on January 03, 2017.

Tom Bruce's last appearance for the BlackCaps came on February 02, 2020, against the India National Cricket Team in a T20I match in Mount Maunganui.

Overall, he featured in 17 T20I matches for New Zealand and scored 279 runs at an average of 18.60 and a strike rate of 122.36 with two half-centuries.

Now, Tom Bruce has qualified to play for Scotland because of his Edinburgh-born father, who represented a Scotland Development side in 2016.

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There's a long Scottish history within my family - Tom Bruce

In an official statement released by Cricket Scotland, Tom Bruce said that there is a "long Scottish history" within his family, and he is excited to represent Scotland after playing for New Zealand five years ago. He said:

"There's a long Scottish history within my family and I know they will be incredibly proud that I am representing Scotland on the world stage. I've been fortunate enough to play for New Zealand five years ago, and I want to continue to showcase my skills on the world stage, and help the Scotland team achieve success, as I know the group is capable of achieving success and continuing to grow as a team.

"I was involved briefly in the setup back in 2016, and it was an awesome experience. I played alongside and against a lot of the current group of Scotland players, and it's been great following their development through the years and I'm looking forward to linking up with them again.

"For me, I want to help the team in any way shape or form to play some consistent quality cricket and ultimately help get us to a World Cup."

I'm very excited about Tom joining the group - Doug Watson

Scotland men's head coach Doug Watson also expressed excitement over Tom Bruce joining the team and labelled him as a world-class cricketer who brings a plethora of experience to the table. He said:

"I'm very excited about Tom joining the group, not only is he a world-class cricketer, he brings a whole range of experience, he's played a lot of 50-over and T20 cricket.

"He's going to add massive value both on the field and off the field in the years ahead, and I'm looking forward to getting him amongst the group, and I'm sure he'll fit in perfectly well."