Tim Southee admits ‘no hiding’ from lack of wickets ahead of 100th Test

New Zealand skipper Tim Southee will be playing his 100th Test match of his career against Australia in Christchurch, which is slated to begin on March 8. Ahead of that, the 35-year-old is a bit concerned about his rough patch in international cricket and acknowledged that he is not at the level where he should be, given the experience he has. Notably, in the first Test against the Trans-Tasman rivals, Southee picked up just two wickets as New Zealand suffered a massive loss of 172 runs.

After this, former cricketer Ross Taylor criticised Southee and his team for not being able to execute their plans against quality opponents. Reflecting upon that, Southee stated that there’s no hiding away from his current run of form and added that he is working very hard and expects the situation to change in the forthcoming Test.

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“You always want to be performing at your best and I think there's no hiding from the fact that the currency we deal in as a bowler is wickets, and the last three Test matches I haven't got the wickets I would have liked. I have probably not been where I should be as the most experienced bowler seamer in the side,” Southee was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

“But like everyone, each week you're trying to get better. Each week you're trying to go out and put your best foot forward. Prepare as well as you can to give yourself the best chance and that's the same over the last couple of days. I've done that. But there's no hiding from the fact that the last couple of Test matches have been disappointing. I know that. I'd always like more wickets. And hopefully, there's some to come,” he added.

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Meanwhile, just like Southee, Kane Williamson too will be playing his 100th Test match against Australia in Christchurch. The former New Zealand skipper is regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, having scored 8675 runs at an average of 55.25 in the longest format of the game.