Former Black Caps batsman and coach Craig McMillan has questioned whether the side’s selectors are brave enough to drop their out-of-form captain Kane Williamson.
Talking to Newstalk ZB’s D’Arcy Waldegrave, McMillan questioned Williamson’s place in the side after an underwhelming performance against England on Tuesday in which he scored arun-a-ball 40 and dropped a catch.
Batting at No 3 for New Zealand, Williamson has managed a healthy average of 30.55 in 10 Twenty20 fixtures in 2022, but the runs have come at an under-par strike rate of just 112.7.
Across all T20 leagues in 2022, Williamson has a strike rate of 104, the third lowest in a calendar year by a batsman who has faced more than 450 deliveries.
Lowest T20 strike rate for a calendar year (min 450 balls faced):
Ambati Rayudu in 2019 - 101 Kyle Coetzer in 2013 - 102 Kane Williamson in 2022 - 104#T20WorldCup
Even Williamson’s career strike rate of 122.5 is tough to reconcile in a format of the sport that’s getting more proficient at producing pure boundary hitters.
The situation has McMillan concerned, especially after an innings in which Glenn Phillips’ 62 from 36 balls wasn’t enough to keep pace with England’s total.
“I’m worried about the captain at No 3, going at a run-a-ball 40 from 40 at No 3 is just not good enough. He put a lot of pressure on Glenn Phillips who has been New Zealand’s star performer with the bat.”
Glenn Phillips in action. Photo / Photosport
McMillan says Black Caps selectors have some tough thinking ahead of them.
“Kane is one of the world’s best, I just wonder whether T20 is his gig at the moment and whether New Zealand are brave enough to actually make a change, put someone like Daryl Mitchell up at No 3, bring Michael Bracewell, who has some power, into that middle order and say that we’re going to continue to play that aggressive brand of cricket.
“Watching Kane, and I’ve watched him a lot over the years, he looked like he was only ever looking for ones and maybe the odd two. Batting at No 3, their strike rate has to be 125 to 130-plus, and that really dug a bit of a hole for New Zealand that they could never really get ahead of.”
McMillan compared Williamson’s position within the wider New Zealand cricket setup as being similar to England’s star batsman Joe Root who, despite a career average of 35.7 at a strike rate of 126.3, hasn’t played for England in T20s since 2019.
“I think he’s [Williamson] still searching for some form. He’s really struggled over a period of time, he played nicely in the tri-series final against Pakistan at Hagley Oval where he got 50-odd but he just hasn’t really been able to build any momentum.
“I sort of look at him and I look at Joe Root, and you look at that England side; Joe Root can’t make that England side.
“I think there is an opportunity - if New Zealand are brave enough - to actually make a change, but is it the time to do it? Probably not.”
New Zealand have one more pool-play fixture left in the T20 World Cup, against Ireland - a team that tested the Black Caps earlier this year - on Friday at 5pm, where a win will secure the team a semifinal matchup against, most likely, India or South Africa.
