AMSTELVEEN: Former New Zealand Test player and TV commentator Simon Doull has suggested that the Blackcaps’ all-format captain Kane Williamson should step down as Test captaincy to prolong his career.
Doull urged that the New Zealand skipper stick to leading the team in the limited overs format, and Headingley Test would be Williamson’s best chance to walk away from the Test captaincy.
Williamson has been out of color in the ongoing Test series against England. He too was ruled out of the second Test at Trent Bridge after testing positive for Covid-19 on the eve of the match. In the first Test, he managed to score 17 cumulative runs in both innings.
He has been struggling with his form and fitness in recent months. He has played only two tests since he led his team to victory in the World Test Championship last year. He also failed to impress in this year’s Indian Premier League season.
speaking to Guardian, Doull praised Williamson as one of the best players New Zealand had ever produced and suggested that he should focus on preserving his career and handing over the Test captaincy reins to newly found replacement Tom Latham.
“I just don’t know about the longevity of Kane Williamson the captain. He is, without a doubt, the best player we have produced outside of Sir Richard Hadlee. He is world class and I would love for him to be the best player we have ever seen, and if that means giving up the Test captaincy to prolong his career, I think he should do it,” Doull said as reported by guardian.
“He’s never been a media lover, he’s just not that guy, he’s a real cricket guy, he loves the game, he studies the game. I just don’t know if he can hold all three formats. He would rather he was just New Zealand’s T20 and one-day captain.” he added he.
He further went on to say that the upcoming third Test against England would be the best time for Williamson to step away from responsibility and claimed Latham as “a worthy replacement” as he has been leading the team in his absence.
“When you have a really worthy replacement, and Tom Latham is. I think it’s the easiest time to transition away from it.
New Zealand do not play another test until the autumn [after Headingley]so it’s not a bad time after the Leeds Test to do it”, he concluded.
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