Cricket odyssey: Captain Kane on injury, Covid and Kohli rivalry
Black Caps skipper eyes IPL opener but accepts he may have to miss Lord’s test due to clash. reports.
For the well-travelled Kane Williamson this was the toughest farewell, to wife Sarah and their threemonth-old daughter, Maggie, plus a wistful glance to the ocean from his Mount Maunganui home.
New Zealand’s captain will reunite with his wife and daughter in England in June, but won’t set foot back in his front door until mid-December after his nine-month cricketing odyssey across a Covid-19 clouded world.
He flew out on Thursday to the Indian Premier League, and awaits news of a vaccination which could be administered in either India or England. Williamson’s elbow injury, which sidelined him after the final Australia Twenty20 on March 7, was slow to improve, but he remains hopeful of playing in Sunrisers Hyderabad’s opener against Kolkata Knight Riders on April 12.
Speaking to the Sunday StarTimes by phone before departure, Williamson sounds upbeat with a degree of travel trepidation. Having not held a bat for three weeks, he moved to assure Black Caps’ fans his injury wasn’t a long-term concern as he eyes the World Test Championship final against India at Southampton, starting on June 18. The tendon problem was described as an overuse injury, little surprise given Williamson batted nearly 29 hours and faced 1106 deliveries, averaging 159.75 across four test innings against West Indies and Pakistan in the Black Caps’ series sweeps in December-January. That included epic knocks of 251 in Hamilton and 238 in Christchurch, and vaulted Williamson atop the world test batting rankings, a position he still holds.
‘‘I’ve just started [hitting balls again]. It’s a balance between loading and rest and part of the healing process. It’s not unique to some other injuries I’ve had, and it’s been a little bit frustrating so it’ll be nice to get it right, especially heading away for such a long time,’’ Williamson said.
‘‘At the moment I’m just looking to get it right and then with the Twenty20 format, balancing it with the days off. It’s no different to managing your body in general. The idea is to get it to full health, so hopefully it won’t be so much of an issue.’’
That opening match against the Brendon McCullum-coached KKR is the first of 14 for the Sunrisers in a six-week period. ‘‘I’m aiming to be available heading into that,’’ Williamson said.
Then there’s the playoffs, from May 26 until the final on May 31, to which the David Warnercaptained Sunrisers are regular visitors. Last year, behind locked gates in the United Arab
Emirates, Williamson scored 317 runs at a strike rate of 134 as his side got within one win of the decider.
If they repeat their run in the coming weeks it has its downside for Williamson — he will almost certainly miss the first test against England at Lord’s starting on June 2. Trent Boult (Mumbai Indians) is in a similar position with his side the defending champions. The two England tests were late additions to the schedule, and were seen as ideal WTC buildup, but also highlights the vexed issue of the global cricket calendar.
Said Williamson: ‘‘Dates kept changing, and then they were locked in and you’re in a unique position due to Covid where it becomes a juggling act. At this point it’s each day as it comes and you have to be a little bit fluid with it.
‘‘As soon as your team is no longer in the tournament, whenever that is, it will be a quick trip across [to England] and prepare for the test match that as soon as possible you can be available for. That will be what I’d be quite keen to do.
‘‘Yeah, it is [frustrating] but at the same time in the current climate it’s one you have to accept.’’
By then, Williamson may finally have received his first Covid-19 jab, too. It’s been a hot topic in recent weeks, with the
Government announcing a vaccine rollout where Black Caps and Olympic athletes could receive theirs before departure overseas.
That didn’t happen soon enough for Williamson, nine other Black Caps’ IPL players and coaches like McCullum, Stephen Fleming and Shane Bond.
Initial talk of vaccines for IPL players on arrival was quelled by Indian administrators, but Williamson said discussions were ongoing, also involving NZC.
‘‘When we arrive in India there will be a plan and we may be able to get it, or whether there’s an opportunity in the UK when we arrive.
‘‘At this stage it’s day by day and taking all the preventive options that we have been doing, keep our distance and then address the opportunity of a vaccine when it becomes slightly more realistic.’’
He expected strict protocols and a bubble in India where the virus remains a threat, and was buoyed by how the IPL went in the UAE last year. ‘‘Having gone away previously and seen how well it was run, it does give you that confidence. However it would be great to get [a vaccine] but at this point in time we don’t know when that will or won’t be.’’
When Williamson gets to England he’ll be based there for several months, and play in The Hundred tournament before the Black Caps’ next scheduled assignment in Bangladesh in September. Then there’s the T20 World Cup in India, before tests against Virat Kohli’s side in late November, stretching into December, before heading home. His wife, who is English, and their daughter will be based with her family in the UK during that time, a comforting thought for Williamson as he boarded the plane.
‘‘Certainly the family side of things is another really important piece to try and make work as best you can. You make plans, and also expect a few
curveballs along the way.’’
Then there’s June 18, a date circled on New Zealand and Indian cricket fans’ calendars for weeks.
Originally scheduled for Lord’s, then shifted to the biosecure Rose Bowl with its onsite hotel, the inaugural WTC final provides the Black Caps another shot at an elusive title after defeats in the 2015 and 2019 Cricket World Cup deciders.
Williamson, Boult, Kyle Jamieson and Mitchell Santner will join their team-mates from India when preparations are in full swing, and should arrive in time for the second test at Edgbaston on June 10, at the
latest.
It also gives Williamson a rematch with his friend, and fellow batting genius, Kohli, who he’ll joust with next when they play Royal Challengers Bangalore on April 15.
‘‘We go a long way back to under-19 days, and we’ve been in each other’s company doing what we do for a number of years now. We share a lot of different thoughts about the game and other things.
‘‘He’s a good friend, actually, and one who’s always a pleasure to catch up with whenever we get the opportunity. It’s one of the beauties of playing sport.
‘‘It’ll be great to catch up over
the UK, and also to play the best side in the world in the test championship final in England is a really exciting prospect.’’
Williamson’s played the Rose Bowl before, but never in a test. The ground has hosted just six tests, three last year including England’s shock loss to the West Indies and two draws with Pakistan. The Black Caps beat India 2-0 at home a year ago, and last time on neutral ground in a different format they beat India in a stirring CWC semifinal in Manchester in 2019. Both were on pitches offering movement for the seamers, and with Black Caps’ four-pronged pace attack, they will be hoping for some greenery.