IND vs NZ: Kane Williamson Intends To Keep Participating In All Three Formats Despite Challenging Volume Of Cricket

Since New Zealand’s elimination from the T20 World Cup at the semi-final stage, the question of Kane Williamson‘s future as a T20 player, and particularly as an international T20 player, has taken on greater significance.

His ability to lead New Zealand in all three formats at age 32 and a time when other players, most notably his teammate Trent Boult, are becoming selective about when and what formats they play has also been questioned. His role as a top-order anchor has also come under scrutiny.

I Love All The Formats: Kane Williamson

Kane Williamson, however, intends to keep playing all three formats despite acknowledging that juggling the volume of cricket in the calendar will be a challenge.

“Yeah, I love all the formats, for different reasons, and in fact playing the three and changing between them is a challenge that is enjoyable,” he told ESPNcricinfo in an interview facilitated by Prime Video.

“But having said that, there is a balance to strike in terms of just general volume [of cricket], and that’s important.

“Everybody is a little bit challenged by that, certainly some of the players that may have done it for a long time, and you’re always looking to be clear with that direction – to stay fresh and focused on what is most important with your involvement in any team. Yeah, always looking to monitor that space as well as you can.”

Boult chose to forego a NZC central contract, which casts doubt on the future of his international career, especially after he was left out of New Zealand’s initial post-T20 World Cup selections.

Tim Southee, Boult’s longtime new-ball partner, is 33 years old and might not have much time left in international cricket.

These two, together with Williamson, make up what is regarded as New Zealand’s “golden generation”; since 2015, they have advanced to five world finals in all three formats, and they now hold the World Test Championship trophy.

Just Focusing On What’s In Front Of You Is What’s Really Important: Kane Williamson

Kane Williamson claimed that he does not actively consider the transition that New Zealand may soon have to go through and that it is crucial for players to remain in the present and contribute as effectively as they can while still playing.

“You sort of hope that whilst you’re here, and trying to do as well as you can as a team, and with all the other individuals involved, that there’s a real effort to try and grow the game, to try and play your role to the best of your ability, to try and improve as much as you can as a player, and hopefully that sort of adds to the depth of cricket that we have,” Williamson said.

“But just focusing on what’s in front of you is what’s really important, and in years to come there’ll be transition, or there’s perhaps transition a little bit even earlier – that’s always there, that’s always happening in professional sport, and whoever the next group or crop are, they’ll I’m sure have a lot of motivation to want to get better as a team and go even further as a side as well.”

Also Read:IND vs NZ: MS Dhoni Up For A Big Role In The Indian Team: Reports