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Kane Williamson steps down as New Zealand Test captain, Tim Southee to take over

Williamson signs off as skipper having led New Zealand to 22 wins in 40 Test matches.

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Tim Southee, a senior fast bowler, will lead the team in the longest version of the game after Kane Williamson announced his resignation as Test captain on Thursday. Williamson will continue to captain New Zealand in ODIs and T20Is while Tom Latham will support Tim Southee in Test cricket.

The 32-year-old said that he took the call, thought about how to manage his workload, and spoke with the NZC. Tim Southee will lead New Zealand on their tour of Pakistan later in December as the country's 31st Test captain. From December 26 to January 13, the BlackCaps will play two tests and three one-day internationals in Pakistan.

Six years after taking over from Brendon McCullum as New Zealand's Test captain, Kane Williamson's tenure comes to an end. In 38 Tests, he guided the squad to 22 wins, the biggest of which came in the 2021 World Test Championship final.

Although Southee has commanded New Zealand in 22 Twenty20 internationals, his first Test captaincy will come later in December. In addition, Southee becomes just the second professional fast bowler since Harry Cave in 1955 to be named as New Zealand captain.

As the top batter who captained the BlackCaps in Test matches, Williamson leaves behind a significant legacy. He scored 11 hundreds while serving as captain, 8 of which came in victories, and he averaged 57.

"Captaining the BlackCaps in Test cricket has been an incredibly special honour. For me, Test cricket is the pinnacle of the game and I've enjoyed the challenges of leading the side in the format," Williamson said.

"Captaincy comes with an increased workload on and off the field and at this stage of my career I feel the time is right for this decision.

"After discussions with NZC, we felt that continuing to captain the white-ball formats was preferable with two World Cups in the next two years.

"I'm excited to support Tim as captain and Tom as vice-captain. Having played with both of them for most of my career, I'm confident they'll do a great job," he added.

Tom Latham has been confirmed as Southee's vice-captain having previously leading the side in Williamson's absence.

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