Kane Williamson has been appointed as New Zealand’s captain in the Test format of the game. This news comes after Brendon McCullum’s retirement from international cricket. Williamson has already captained the Kiwis in several One Day Internationals and T20s.
Speaking on Kane Williamson’s appointment, New Zealand Cricket’s Chief Executive, David White said-
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Kane has been a leader within the team for a long time now and has already shown himself to be an extremely capable captain. He's respected by his peers and the wider cricket community for his professional approach both on and off the field, and has a superb cricket brain.
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Williamson, who is currently in India playing in the IPL for the Sunrisers Hyderabad, said that it was an honour to captain the team which he feels can achieve a lot. He also added that he wanted to build on the achievements of the previous captain Brendon McCullum, who retired in February.
Williamson led New Zealand in the recently concluded World Twenty20 in India where the Blackcaps stormed into the semi-finals where they lost against England. The Blackcaps captain, however, won praise for his bold use of spin.
Williamson made his international debut in 2010 against India and was named Wisden Almanack's Leading Cricketer in the World this month after scoring 2,692 international runs across all formats last year -- the third-highest annual aggregate ever.
Before his death last month, legendary New Zealand cricketer, Martin Crowe singled out Williamson as the player most likely to succeed him as the Kiwis’ greatest ever batsman. Williamson already has an average of 49.23 from 48 Tests, including 13 centuries, and averages 47.00 from 93 ODIs. His Test figures include a career-best 242 not out against Sri Lanka in Wellington last year to give New Zealand a stunning victory from a losing position.
Blackcaps’ Coach Mike Hesson said he did not believe the captaincy duties would prove a distraction for Williamson at the crease. "He's got that ability to go into his little bubble when he bats and hopefully we can keep that," he said. The BlackCaps' next tour in is August, when they go to Zimbabwe and South Africa.