Kane Williamson, the captain of New Zealand, praised Team India's young guns, saying they will all be big players for their team in the future, as he expects a tough fight from the young brigade in the three-match T20I series.
The first T20I was abandoned due to rain in Wellington on November 18.
While the senior stars like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were given rest for the New Zealand tour, the young stars like Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan, Arshdeep Singh, and Umran Malik will be the star attraction during the T20I series under Hardik Pandya’s captaincy.
Well, Williamson has already seen India’s young players’ potential in the IPL and knows their quality; hence, he knows what they are going to face in the T20I series at home.
Kane Williamson told reporters in Wellington, “I’ve got no doubt they all will be big players for India, I’ve seen them all in the IPL. They’ve got great quality irrespective of the names they put out.”
India and New Zealand are both looking forward to a fresh start after their respective semifinal heartbreaks at the T20 World Cup 2022 and Williamson said that it’s a great opportunity for the young players to prove themselves for the upcoming ICC events.
The skipper added, “We’ll start fresh, this is a new series both sides are looking forward to. We both wanted to get to the final, but we’ve got a week to rest and get ourselves ready for this. Quite quickly after a major event, we’ve had a whole heap of T20 cricket in the past.
We’re quite excited to play India irrespective though. Most teams gear up toward major events that are not too far away, and the ODI format will now be a great opportunity for guys to come in. I’m sure there will be plenty of opportunities for guys to shine. The likes of Adam Milne were in the T20 World Cup squad but didn’t get an opportunity, so this is a good time to get them some game time.”
Williamson is hopeful of getting a full house for the second T20I match to be played in Mount Maunganui on November 20 after the first match was abandoned due to rain. He signed off by saying, “It is usually sunny out there, with a bit of rain. Hopefully, we get a full house.”
(With Prime Video Inputs)
