As Williamson retires, dignity threatens to vanish from cricketing fields

When Kane Williamson announced his retirement from international cricket a few days ago, it marked the end of an era in New Zealand cricket.

Williamson was the captain of the team for more than six years from 2016, a period during which the side won their first International Cricket Council (ICC) World Test Championship in 2021 and finished as the finalists in the ICC World Cup in 2019 and the ICC T20 World Cup in 2021. The side also won a Test series for the first time ever in Pakistan and defeated England in an away series as well. Under his leadership, the side cast away their image as the “eternal bridesmaid” of the game and bloomed into a top drawer team in all three versions of the sport.

Williamson was also one of the best batsmen in the world in contemporary international cricket. He scored tons of runs in Test matches (9,515 from 110 Tests at an average of 54.07), One Day Internationals (7,256 from 175 games at an average of 48.97) and T20 Internationals (2,575 from 93 matches at a strike rate of 123.08). A total of 19,346 runs in international cricket makes him the most prolific Kiwi batsman ever. He also had the unique ability to step up his performance by a couple of notches when the situation demanded it. His prowess with the willow made him one of the “Fab Four” batsmen, the other being Virat Kohli of India, Steven Smith of Australia and Joe Root of England, who dominated international cricket during the decade from 2015 till 2025.

When Williamson hangs up his boots, there are two abiding images that come to mind. The first is the wistful smile after the ICC World Cup final of 2019, where New Zealand emerged as the second-best despite not losing the match. This contest, where even the super overs could not produce a result, would be rated as one of the greatest 50-over games ever played. In the end, England were declared as the winners based on having struck more boundaries. This “boundary count back rule”, which was buried in fine print in the rules governing the championship, was for all purposes a very unfair and bizarre method for determining the championship winner after such a tight and closely fought match. Even as the aghast fans were venting their spleen over the unfairness of this provision, Williamson took the wind out of their sails when he said with a genuine smile, “someone had to walk away with the title, and we are gutted it is not us”. He then proceeded to gracefully congratulate the winning England side.

The other image is again a smile, this time a shy one, but this time after an epochal win. New Zealand defeated Australia by a margin of one wicket in a fiercely contested group-level match in the 2015 ICC World Cup. Playing before a raucous home crowd at Auckland, the Kiwis were brought to the brink of failure by Mitchell Starc, who was firing on all cylinders. Chasing a target of 152 runs, they were cruising along comfortably at 131 for 4 wickets when Starc got into the act and reduced them to 146 for 9. At this juncture, in a high-octane situation, Williamson calmly lofted a snorter from Pat Cummins and deposited it over the stands for a sixer to win the game. As the elated fans broke into thunderous applause and set off a mad round of celebrations, Williamson lifted his bat to acknowledge the cheers and gave himself a fist pump and then proceeded to offer a humble smile almost as an apology!

Dignity is often defined as grace under pressure. By this standard, Williamson would win the award for being the most dignified cricketer ever for his conduct on that evening at Lord’s after losing the World Cup on a technical point. It was amazing that he could maintain his poise and calm despite the pressure cooker situation associated with the match and its ending. It is this dignity that threatens to vanish from cricketing fields with his departure from the game.

This writer resorted to a cheeky measure by asking Artificial Intelligence (AI) platforms to name the greatest gentlemen that cricket has seen during the present century. The first name suggested by AI was that of Kane Williamson, followed by Rahul Dravid and Kumar Sangakkara. These choices were not surprising given the fact that all these cricketers carried themselves with great dignity, both on and off the field. They never questioned the decisions of the umpires, seldom lost their cool in public and always won the praise of compatriots and opponents alike for their positive approach to the game. They were gritty cricketers capable of batting long hours, facing the meanest of bowlers and withstanding the sledges of the fielding side and taunts from the spectators, without losing their focus. They refused to get riled by the antics of opposing teams, criticism by the media and comments from the public. In short, they were model sportspersons, worthy of being adored and emulated by the next generation of players.

It was ironic that the retirement of Williamson coincided with an ugly incident involving Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, the latest batting sensation in the Indian cricketing horizon. The details of what happened during a 50-over match between India “A” and Sri Lanka “A” at Dambulla has been repeated numerous times in print, visual and social media that it has acquired a “viral” status. The young man came in for considerable criticism from all quarters for his conduct. But some observers were sympathetic to him and sought that he be allowed to find his space and not subjected to intense pressure and media scrutiny. These developments prompted the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to announce that Sooryavanshi will be accompanied by his parents during the tour to England and Ireland starting on 26 June, with the travel and living expenses for the couple borne by the cricketing body.

This decision of BCCI is a welcome one, as this will help the young cricketer to get over any feeling of loneliness and homesickness that a long tour abroad is bound to create. However, the larger question remains whether this will help Vaibhav to find his feet in the rough and tumble world of international cricket. Opposing sides in international cricket would have studied his batting style and technique in depth and planned detailed strategies to contain him. His technique and temperament will be subjected to detailed scrutiny in harsh conditions not conducive for easy stroke play. One can be certain that he will face more severe challenges than those he has been exposed to now. While his talent is not in doubt, he will need to develop mental toughness and resilience to take the occasional setbacks in his stride and emerge successful at the highest level. What he needs at this juncture is a steady hand around his shoulders to guide him through the choppy waters during his initial days till he settles down at this level.

One piece of information that is relevant in the present context is that the coach of Rajasthan Royals (RR), the side that Vaibhav represents in IPL, is none other than Kumar Sangakkara. It cannot be denied that the atmosphere in the RR dressing room and the support provided by Sangakkara and the support staff contributed in considerable measure to Vaibhav’s humongous success with the bat in IPL. This brings up the question as to whether it will be worthwhile for the BCCI to examine the feasibility of appointing Sangakkara or any person of similar stature, such as Dravid, as a mentor for this youngster. Leaving Vaibhav in the hands of different persons, such as national coach Gautam Gambhir or Hrishikesh Kanitkar (India “A” coach) or the numerous others who form part of the official cricket establishment, may not solve the problem. In the first place, these persons have other full-time cricket-related jobs, which will leave them with very little time to focus on the needs of Vaibhav. Further, getting a plethora of advice from different sources may lead to the youngster getting confused rather than helping him. Hence, BCCI may consider appointing a personal mentor of sufficient cricketing stature to help Vaibhav tackle the challenges that he is bound to face in the months ahead.

Since BCCI and the national selectors have taken the step to blood Vaibhav at this tender age into the world of international cricket based solely on his exploits in the last season of IPL, they should take the lead to ensure that he is provided the necessary support to help him grow to his full potential. One hopes that BCCI adopts the correct course of action and contributes to building the proper foundation for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to evolve into a world-class batsman and conquer the cricketing world through exploits with his cricket bat.