Former New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson on Sunday announced his retirement from the shortest format ahead of a five-match T20I series against West Indies. He will continue playing franchise cricket.
The 35-year-old has played 93 T20Is during his illustrious career in the shortest format, which began in 2011, scoring 2575 runs at an average of 33 and hitting 18 half-centuries with a top score of 95.
He captained New Zealand on 75 occasions, leading Black Caps to two T20 World Cup semis in 2016 & 2022 and a final in 2021.
“It’s the right time for me and the team. It gives the team clarity for the series moving forward and ahead of their next major focus, which is the T20 World Cup”, Kane Williamson was quoted as saying by the New Zealand Cricket on Sunday.
Acknowledging enormous T20 talent in New Zealand, Williamson said that the important next phase was to get these guys ready for the World Cup.
“Mitch is a brilliant captain and leader – he’s really come into his own with this team. It’s now their time to push the BLACKCAPS forward in this format and I’ll be supporting from afar,” he stated.
Referring to his future in other formats, Kane stated that he was open-minded about his ODI and Test future. However, his immediate focus is on preparing for the three-Test series against West Indies, which starts in Christchurch on December 2.
He thanked NZC for the huge support and respect, saying he will continue to keep the lines of communication open with NZC.
NZC CEO Scott Weenink said he respected Williamson’s decision and saluted his contributions to the T20 team.
“Kane’s performances as a player and his service as captain of the T20 side have been nothing short of immense,” he said, adding that the world-class batter contributed in all conditions around the world. He mentioned Kane’s knock of 85 in the T20 World Cup final as one of the more special T20I innings played by a New Zealander.
