Australia must resist going short to Kane Williamson in World Cup clash
When Australia meet New Zealand at Lord’s there is one man above all others they will hope to see the back of quickly. But the bowlers have been warned: you can’t bounce Kane Williamson out.
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Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins have been told to nail a “really disciplined” length when they look to knock over New Zealand superstar Kane Williamson at Lord’s on Saturday night.
But they must avoid bowling short after an analysis revealed Williamson averages a monster 69.3 runs against those deliveries, compared with 40.7 runs (good length) and 44.3 (full balls).
Australian coach Justin Langer said Williamson was New Zealand’s version of Joe Root, Steve Smith and Virat Kohli.
“They're the guys in the middle you want to get out,” Langer said.
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“One of the trends of world cricket is if you go deep you win most games. And he can take the game deep because he is such a technically good player.
“He's obviously got a great mentality for the game, he will be a very important wicket for us. We will be studying him closely.”
Captain Aaron Finch said the Aussies had done their homework although there was no standout match-up.
“He’s so damaging if you bowl wide, and he’s so good off his pads that your length has to be really, really disciplined,” Finch said.
“You have to try and dry him up. It’s like all great players, they don’t have a huge amount of weaknesses, and on pitches that don’t bounce a huge amount it’s tougher to get that nick.
“So you just have to be patient and disciplined.”
The rival skippers are enjoying brilliant years with Williamson’s average of 65.3 ranking third in the world and Finch’s 62.8 ranking fourth.
Williamson, 28, peeled off consecutive scores of 79 not-out, 106 not-out and 148 in a two-week masterclass that drove New Zealand towards the top of the World Cup.
Finch joined Williamson at Yorkshire in 2014, with Williamson once telling Finch “they don’t write how many hundreds you get on your headstone” in a piece of advice that provided the Aussie some perspective.
“He was a world-class Test batsman at that stage,” Finch said.
“His one-day game over the last three or four years has probably gone to a new level as well, just in terms of his pure output of numbers and probably his strike-rate.
“He’s an unbelievably gifted player. What stood out was just the way he carried himself with the bat, nothing flustered him.
“He was never fazed by a situation or anything, he was always really well prepared. When you’ve got guys that are pretty unflappable and cool in a crisis you just have to bring your best on the day.”
While Williamson is seen as ‘Captain Nice Guy’, Finch said he was a competitive beast.
“Everyone’s got that (edge) if you’re playing international sport. Some people are chest pumpers and others just go about their business,” he said.
Originally published as Australia must resist going short to Kane Williamson in World Cup clash
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