Williamson faces his biggest test
Gilmore exits
THE toughest task for New Zealand captain Kane Williamson so far was dodging some Lockie Ferguson thunderbolts whizzing past his nose.
On a sunny Sunday afternoon it ramps up a notch as he leads an understrength New Zealand team onto the hallowed Sydney Cricket Ground for his first time as captain in Australia.
In one-day internationals it doesn’t get any harder, against the world champions and topranked side who lost just one of their 16 home ODIs these past two years. That was their most recent, too, a dead rubber fifth ODI against India in January when 331-4 played 330-7.
Typically, Williamson looked relaxed and unfazed by the gravity of this task, to retain the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy in three ODIs, with Canberra and Melbourne to follow.
‘‘It’s an enjoyable series, it always is, and they’re always tough opposition and a very strong side so you don’t need more motivation to get up to play your best cricket against the best in the world,’’ he said.
‘‘The focus is for us to play our best cricket and if we do that we know we can beat anyone.’’
It’s Williamson’s 25th ODI as captain and first in charge against Australia. He’s guided New Zealand to an away series win over Pakistan, lost series deciders in South Africa and India, and averages 51.1 as skipper compared with a career figure of 46.7.
One thing Williamson wouldn’t offer anything on was the makeup of his 11, which contains some selection headaches.
Whether 25-year-old Ferguson is unleashed for his debut remained up in the air. The fast bowler certainly did his best on Friday to impress his new skipper and push for a debut alongside Tim Southee and Trent Boult.
‘‘He sent a couple of messages at training. He bowled really nicely,’’ Williamson smiled.
‘‘He bowls quick, he ran in and bumped me a few times which was great.’’
The only selection clues gleaned from training is that both allrounders Colin de Grandhomme and Jimmy Neesham will likely play to provide six bowling options. That would see Henry Nicholls miss out and Colin Munro at No 4 in an unproven middle order missing the experience and class of Ross Taylor.
The bowling makeup is the head-scratcher, with Southee, Boult and spinner Mitchell Santner seemingly the only certainties. Ferguson and Matt Henry will seemingly contest one spot, or they could omit both and gamble on Todd Astle as a second spinner on a historically spin-friendly pitch that looked dry and full of runs within a vast SCG outfield.
Williamson batted away the Australian dressing room controversy with allrounder Glenn Maxwell fined by the players’ leadership group for ‘‘disrespectful’’ comments made about team-mate Matthew Wade. He genuinely looked to have no interest.
Home captain Steve Smith handed down the verdict on Maxwell – who’d complained about Wade batting himself above him in the Victorian order – and talked up New Zealand. They PHOTOSPORT hammered the Black Caps in their last meeting on Australian soil in the World Cup final in March, 2015. New Zealand have just five returnees from their 11 that day, and Australia seven.
Said Smith: ‘‘They’ve got some dangerous players up top, [Martin] Guptill and possibly [Tom] Latham, and some experience in the bowling lineup with guys like Southee and Boult and a bit of pace in this young fellow I’ve heard about, Ferguson. I’ve seen a bit of footage of that.
‘‘We’re going to have to be at our best to beat them in this series.’’
The captaincy battle will be intriguing, too. Williamson continues to impress on that front with canny bowling changes and field tweaks, and holds a 1-0 advantage over Smith after leading New Zealand to victory in their World Twenty20 clash in India in March.
Smith has more batting and bowling firepower to play with while Williamson has a tight unit buoyed by their 2-0 test win over Pakistan.
The big key is for the New Zealand batting order to defy the Australian pace attack and post a big total, then they’re right in the game.
Game one might be their best chance for the ambush, to pinch a surprise victory and break a 12-12 deadlock in Chappell-Hadlee contests since 2004. Surfing: Six-time world champion Stephanie Gilmore has been dumped out of the season-ending Maui Pro in the fourth round. Gilmore was beaten by fellow Australian Keely Andrew in a convincing display, Andrew posting the highest wave score of the day with 8.83. In comparison, Gilmore could only muster a 7.77 – not enough to see her into the quarterfinals. Andrew will be joined in the final eight by world champion Tyler Wright, whose scores of 7.00 and 8.00 were enough to eliminate local Brissa Hennessy, after the pair were both beaten in the nonelimination third round.