Kane Williamson relinquishes Captaincy post New Zealand's T20 World Cup 2024 debacle, turns down central contract

New Zealand’s legendary batter and limited overs Captain Kane Williamson has refused to opt for a central contract for thr 2024-2025 tenure. Moreover, he has also decided to relinquish his captaincy in a bid to extend his international cricket career.

In the same vein, the legendary shared his thoughts on zeroing in on his big decision. Interestingly, Williamson pointed out the fact that he was mulling over some overseas opportunities which may be coming underway. As a result, he will not be available to represent New Zealand during the summer.

"Helping push the team forward across the formats is something I'm very passionate about and something I want to keep contributing towards," Williamson was quoted as saying by ESPN Cricinfo.

"However, pursuing an overseas opportunity during the New Zealand summer means I'm unable to accept a central contract offer," the legendary batter continued.

Notably, the Black Caps have a minimal schedule of playing at home currently. They will be touring India along with featuring in Eight Tests and also playing series at home against England during the November-December timeline. Earlier, Williamson had also stepped down from Test captaincy which led Tim  Southee to don the leadership role. However, amid all this, the 33-year-old made it amply clear that he was still as hungry as ever before to serve New Zealand in all the possible ways and may accept a contract in the future.

“Playing for New Zealand is something I treasure, and my desire to give back to the team remains undiminished. My life outside cricket has changed, however. Spending more time with my family and enjoying experiences with them at home or abroad is something that’s even more important to me,” he further added.

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Meanwhile, reflecting on Kane Williamson's big decisions which may impact the team significantly, the New Zealand Cricket (NZC) CEO, Scott Weenink, lauded the legend for showing commitment not just towards cricket but also depicting the true family man he has always been. Furthermore, he added that Williamson will remain engaged in league cricket across the globe and will only help the Black Caps as he will be in touch with the game and can still continue to contribute when the time was ripe.

We're happy to make an exception for our greatest-ever batter: Scott Weenink

Interestingly, Weenink also did not shy away from appreciating the greatness of the 33-year-old by calling him the greatest batter New Zealand have ever produced and has duly earned the right to take his calls. Notably, NZC have always preferred to give more playing chances to centrally contracted players in the Kiwi nation. But for Kane Williamson, the CEO went a notch ahead by declaring that he would go all out for the legendary New Zealander given his exceptional contribution to the game and also his divine stature.

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