Wellington. Kane Williamson, New Zealand’s most successful Test captain, has decided to relinquish the Test captaincy of New Zealand. In the last six years, Williamson has won a record 22, lost 10 and drawn eight in 40 Tests under his captaincy. Under his captaincy, New Zealand won the first World Test Championship last year. The winning percentage under his captaincy was 55, compared to 44 under the captaincy of stand-in captain Tom Latham and 35 under the captaincy of former captain and current England coach Brendon McCullum. 5 percent winning average.
Pacer Tim Southee will be the new captain of the team while Williamson, 32, will play as a specialist batsman. Williamson will continue to be the captain in the limited overs format. Williamson said, “Captaincy brings additional workload on and off the field. I think this is the right decision at this stage of career. After talking to New Zealand Cricket, we felt that with two World Cups to be held in the next two years, the focus should be on limited overs captaincy.
Saudi will be the 31st Test captain of New Zealand. Under his captaincy, the team will play two Tests against Pakistan this month. He has captained New Zealand in 22 T20 matches. Chief coach Gary Stead lauded Williamson’s contribution as captain, saying, “New Zealand have achieved a lot of success under Kane’s captaincy.” He led from the front with his performances and led the team to victory in its maiden World Test Championship.” He said, “We hope to reduce his workload and see him playing at the international level for a long time.”