Kane Williamson announced his retirement from international cricket
Former New Zealand captain Kane Williamson has announced his retirement from international cricket with immediate effect. He ended a 16-year international career in the middle of the three-Test series against England.
Williamson, 35, made his international debut for New Zealand in 2010. He decided not to play the remaining two Tests at The Oval and Trent Bridge after scoring zero and 18 runs respectively in the first Test at Lord’s. Williamson has not been under New Zealand Cricket’s central contract since June 2024.
In the latter stages of his career, he played in various T20 franchise tournaments, participating only in selected international series.
Announcing his retirement, Williamson said that he had been thinking about quitting international cricket for a long time.
He said, ‘I had been thinking about it for a long time. In the last few days, I felt that now was the right time. My passion and hunger for international cricket have always been strong.
Williamson finished his career as New Zealand’s all-time leading run-scorer in Test cricket. He scored 9,515 runs in 110 Tests at an average of 54.06. The biggest achievement of his career was leading New Zealand to its first World Test Championship title in 2021. New Zealand defeated India in the final. Similarly, he has scored 7,256 runs in 175 One Day Internationals, the fourth-most for New Zealand. Similarly, he has scored 2,575 runs in 93 T20 Internationals, the second-most for New Zealand. Williamson has captained 40 Tests, with a record of 22 wins, 10 losses, and 8 draws. He has captained 91 ODIs, with a record of 46 wins, 40 losses, and one draw. Similarly, he has captained 75 T20Is, with a record of 39 wins, 34 losses, and one draw.
Under his leadership, New Zealand won the World Test Championship in 2021 and reached the semi-finals of the 2016 T20 World Cup, the final of the 2019 ODI World Cup, the final of the 2021 T20 World Cup, the semi-finals of the 2022 T20 World Cup, and the semi-finals of the 2023 ODI World Cup.
Williamson’s departure after 16 years of international cricket marks the end of a golden chapter in New Zealand cricket.
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