TOP STORIES
New Zealand head coach Rob Walter speaks on Kane Williamson's availability

New Zealand's marquee batter Kane Williamson's availability for New Zealand's upcoming home summer remains undecided, as the veteran batter continues to navigate his playing commitments and personal considerations. Head coach Rob Walter has confirmed that a final decision on Williamson's participation will take more time but emphasized that New Zealand Cricket (NZC) is willing to give the veteran batter more time.
Williamson, who is currently operating under a casual playing contract with NZC, opted out of New Zealand’s three-match T20I series against Australia, and he had also made himself unavailable for the tour of Zimbabwe.
"Kane, we're still in conversations as to what the summer is going to look like. He will play, no doubt about that. Just what and where is still in discussion,” Walter was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.
"I think the reality is we're dealing with all the guys on casual contracts, actually in different positions from a playing point of view. Kane is one of those and he deserves the opportunity to sit and talk about what the rest of his year will look like. But I keep coming back to the most important thing, [which] is that he wants to play for his country, and so nutting out exactly what that looks like can take an extra week or two, but surely, he deserves that,” he said.
Walter was not concerned about not having a full-strength T20I side in the build-up to next year's World Cup; however, he put emphasis on team culture.
"I think we don't live in an ideal world and so that's part and parcel of it. I've been part of a World Cup campaign [with South Africa] where the team assembled at its full strength three days before our first game and that team managed to make a final,” Walter said.
Tags
More News

Pakistan's Sidra Amin reprimanded for code of conduct during clash against India
Pakistan batter Sidra Amin has been reprimanded for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct during Pakistan's match against India at Colombo’s R. Premadasa Stadium in the ongoing ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025.
She was found guilty of breaching Article 2.2 of the ICC Code of Conduct, which relates to "abuse of cricket equipment or clothing, ground equipment or fi...

Sri Lanka appoint Julian Wood and Rene Ferdinands as batting and spin-bowling coaches
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has appointed Julian Wood and Rene Ferdinands as the new batting and spin-bowling coaches of the men’s national team. They replace Thilina Kandamby and Piyal Wijetunge, respectively, who have served in the roles in recent times. This dual appointment marks a clear intent from SLC to inject fresh ideas and international expertise into the...

"It’s always a great battle": Aaron Finch predicts outcome for India's ODI series against Australia
Former Australian cricketer Aaron Finch has shared his thoughts on the upcoming three-match ODI series between India and Australia, predicting a tightly contested battle between the two teams. Finch believes that while the series will be closely fought, his former team is likely to edge it narrowly.
India recently announced a strong 15-player squad for th...

Krishnamachari Srikkanth slams Harshit Rana's selection for Australia ODIs
As India prepare to tour Australia for a three‑match ODI series beginning October 19, much of the discourse has centred on the futures of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the ODI format leading up to the 2027 World Cup. Meanwhile, the attention has also been grabbed by the surprising inclusion of pacer Harshit Rana in the squad that has triggered a scathing reac...

Women's ODI World Cup, NZ-W vs SA-W: All you need to know
In the seventh match of the ongoing Women's ODI World Cup, New Zealand Women are set to take on South Africa Women on Monday in Indore. Both teams will step onto the field with an aim for victory, having suffered defeats in their respective opening matches.
Neither side has had the ideal start to their World Cup campaign. South Africa Wom...