The making of citizen Kane
The much-admired Black Caps captain talks surfing, basketball and what sparked him after that devastating World Cup final. Mark Geenty reports.
‘‘In general sport is a fantastic thing for everybody, not just physically but mentally.’’ Kane Williamson
On a stunning Mount Maunganui morning in late November, the swell was every surfer’s dream. Kane Williamson, his New Zealand team poised for a first cricket test victory over England down the road at Bay Oval, could barely bring himself to glance from his beachfront home out to the sea.
‘‘I made an effort not to look at it, I didn’t want that to creep into my mind as an option,’’ he says with a rueful smile.
‘‘It’s so tiring, eh, so you don’t want to do it on the morning of something else. They’re few and far between, my surfs, with the amount of cricket.’’
When he does drag the longboard out, occasionally with his neighbour and team-mate Trent Boult, it’s Williamson’s idyll. Even if the waves are poor there’s no such thing as a bad surf, he says, a strong physical workout in the soothing salt water. And the solitude: no phone, no video analysis, no selection meetings, trainings or press conferences . . .
‘‘It’s a great way to take your mind off things. It’s a real hobby of mine but certainly a passion that outweighs the ability.’’
The area’s been home for Williamson all his life, and always provides solace after tours, notably, when he returned home with his English partner, Sarah Raheem, from the Cricket World Cup.
From the devastating low of being pipped by England on boundary countback in the final at Lord’s on July 14, the aftermath confirmed Williamson as perhaps the world’s most admired cricketer. He received a rousing ovation after his post-final press conference for his grace amid a shattering, bemusing defeat that would take weeks, even months to digest.
‘‘In terms of the final, and my behaviour, I didn’t think we had a right to moan at that point in time. It’s not like the rules just popped up after the fact, they were already there despite not perhaps agreeing that that’s the best way to decide a cricket match, which it isn’t,’’ Williamson tells Stuff.
‘‘You have a couple of choices, to go that way or the other, and as a group and as a team, the cricket we want to play is always the focus. The outcome is kind of secondary.
‘‘In this instance the outcome was pretty random and emotional and all over the shop, and then it didn’t go our way and I still felt we had to look at what we brought to the game and the cricket we played, and could we be proud of that? The answer is yes.’’
So too were his family, proud as always. Parents Sandra and Brett, who used to adhere to little Kane’s endless demands to bowl to him, his three older sisters Anna, Sophie and Kylie, and twin Logan who is tight with his minutes-older brother, but wasn’t bitten by the cricket bug.
They say you’re a product of your environment and Williamson agrees.
‘‘There’s a pretty strong family vibe going on. Everyone was into their sport and we all got on well and still do. It’s always good fun to catch up whenever we can.
‘‘In cricket when I was younger Dave [Johnstone] was a coach of mine and is still a close friend. You gravitate to certain people. And in the New Zealand environment the likes of Brendon [McCullum] who had a huge influence on the team and a really positive impact.
‘‘You’re constantly getting shaped in whatever environment you’re in, and as best you can you’re trying to be aware of that and hope it’s having a good impact rather than a negative one.’’
At Tauranga Boys’ College, Williamson and his brother were shown around on their first day by future Ireland rugby coach Joe Schmidt. They caught up again at Lord’s this year, when Schmidt attended the World Cup match against Australia.
Williamson became head boy in 2008, while another high achiever Peter Burling was sports captain. Both were regular absentees in their final year for good reason. Williamson captained a New Zealand side including Tim Southee, Trent Boult and Corey Anderson at the under-19 World Cup (where they lost in the semifinals to a Virat Kohli-led India) and Burling – future Americas Cup-winning helmsman and multiple world champion – became the country’s youngest Olympic sailor at 17 on the waters of Qingdao, China.
‘‘I remember he [Burling] came back from winning a men’s world title, he’d achieve these unbelievable things and he’d go up on stage and they’d ask him ‘how does it feel’ and he’d go ‘pretty good’. He’s just so down to earth and a great fella.’’
That leads us to sage advice for the kids, from a wise New Zealand captain: play as many sports as you possibly can at school.
Williamson did, before it became clear professional cricket was his calling. And rugby wasn’t his No 1, either, despite being a gifted first five-eighth.
‘‘I loved basketball, and rugby as well but probably more basketball. That probably wasn’t going to be an option when I stopped growing. I watch a bit of it and when I can try and shoot a few hoops.
‘‘I enjoyed changing sports at school, summer to winter and focus on something different. It was great and without realising it, when cricket became pretty much the only sport you appreciated the balance other sports and schoolwork brought to what you were doing.’’
He doesn’t support an NBA team, even if his team-mates are into their American sports. ‘‘I do watch it but don’t follow it as closely as some of the guys. I’d much rather play basketball.’’
From being what appeared a reluctant captain of his country when McCullum called time, Williamson grew into the role with authority. Instead of thinking, ‘why do they want to hear what I’ve got to say’, he shares his opinions more freely – rarely controversial – and has plenty to offer.
Sportspeople as role models is a vexed issue, notably when some behave badly in public. Williamson is certainly a worthy one, and insists sport has a big role to play in society.
‘‘It’s a great thing. It can also pose a number of challenges to people but in general sport is a fantastic thing for everybody, not just physically but mentally.
‘‘To get people involved in sport, rather than sitting in front of screens, to get people active has to be a good thing.
‘‘There are so many good parts to it; meeting new people or socialising with like-minded people and there’s a lot of good in that. As professional sportspeople it’s important to try and help encourage those sorts of things. That’s one of your duties, I suppose.’’
In terms of doing his duty, Williamson can see in the new year in Sydney well satisfied that he’s achieved that, and a lot more, in 2019.