As he gets ready to make his comeback for his nation in the three-match One-Day International series against England, which begins on Sunday, former New Zealand captain Kane Williamson has stated that he aims to play until the 2027 World Cup.
The 35-year-old, who hasn’t played for New Zealand since losing to India in the Champions Trophy final in March, will be a member of the squad that takes on England at Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui.
“Not (looking) too far ahead,” Williamson said when asked about his plans beyond the upcoming season. “At the back of my mind, there’s probably the ODI World Cup. There’s always other things. Test cricket is pretty dear to me as well.
“Really, it’s a little bit about what I want, and little bit more about what the team wants and where it’s going and what we’re sort of buying into.
“Just keeping those lines of communication open to make sure that we’re nice and focused and clear on what it looks like, but also being really respectful of the fact that this is a team in a special place.
“They’re always trying to build towards something, so for me, in this phase of my career, if I’m there and able to add to it, brilliant.”
In 41 of his 105 Test matches and 91 of his 173 One-Day Internationals, Williamson led New Zealand as captain. He supported current Test captain Tom Latham and One-Day captain Mitchell Santner.
“I played a little with Santner in the one-dayers in the Champions Trophy and he has a really astute cricketing brain,” said Williamson. “Calm, cool sort of character, so looking forward to playing alongside him again.
“In the Tests, with Tommy Latham, he’s done the job a number of times over the years and now it’s his own and he’s doing a fantastic job. He’s incredibly organised and passionate about the group and about Test cricket. It’s great he’s at the helm.”
