Kane Williamson wants more Test matches for New Zealand

New Zealand attains the third-rank in the ICC Rankings for Tests.

New Zealand celebrates their 1-0 Test series win against England on Tuesday | Getty Images

New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson has expressed his disappointment at the lack of red-ball cricket for his side, as they have just two more Test series left this summer.

With their home Test series win over England, the Black Caps have now attained no.3 spot in the ICC Test Team Rankings, trailing only India and South Africa.

According to New Zealand's Future Tour Programs for 2018, they will play 3 Tests against Pakistan in October and 2 Tests against Sri Lanka in December.

New Zealand’s last five-Test series was way back in the Caribbean, in 1971-72, and since then they have played only three-match and two-match Test series, while Williamson and his team wants to play more Tests, saying the Kiwis are not satisfied with just four Test series in a calendar year.

As per ESPN Cricinfo, Williamson said, “There is a little bit of frustration. Guys want to play more Test cricket. The team love playing Test cricket. Four Tests this year (two against Windies and two against England), the guys weren’t ecstatic with (that). We know the coming (year) has a lot more. We have to be patient. I think there's eight next year and maybe 10 after that.”

The Black Caps have played last away Test in India in October 2016, since then they have beaten Pakistan, Bangladesh, West Indies and England at home, getting beaten only by South Africa. The skipper believes that his side has improved a lot since then, but admitted “there’s still work to be done”.

Williamson signed off by saying, “As a Test team, we are growing and improving but there’s still work to be done. The focus isn’t so much on crying out for more, as it is about how we want to approach our cricket as a team, day in, day out. I think that is most important.”

 
 

By Rashmi Nanda - 04 Apr, 2018

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