NEWS
Follow UsNew Zealand skipper Tim Southee, on the back of his side’s 0-2 whitewash at the hands of Australia at home, has conceded that it’s not a given that he will remain the Blackcaps’ Test captain going forward, with the side scheduled to play eight Tests in the subcontinent across the next 12 months.
Southee took over as New Zealand’s Test captain from Kane Williamson in December 2022, but the Blackcaps have underwhelmed under his captaincy, winning just two series, both at home: against Sri Lanka and a severely weakened South African side.
The Kiwis, under Southee, drew away in both Pakistan and Bangladesh, and also at home against England, and have now slipped to their first series defeat in home conditions in seven years.
On top of that, Southee’s own form has been a concern, with the 35-year-old averaging 36.18 as skipper. This number is far worse in the current calendar year, with the right-armer averaging 71.33 in 4 Tests, taking a wicket every 127.1 deliveries.
Post the stinging defeat in Christchurch, the New Zealand skipper admitted that there is no certainty that he will be the Blackcaps’ full-time skipper, going forward. New Zealand are scheduled to tour India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in the next one year, and are also scheduled to play a one-off Test against Afghanistan.
"We'll see," Southee said, when asked if he’ll remain the Test skipper going forward.
"Obviously you go to Asia, the make-up of the side changes slightly with spin becoming the main threat in that part of the world. But we'll see when we get there. We'll deal with this tonight and look to move forward to what's to come."
It is one thing losing 0-2 at home, but Southee’s captaincy was not inspiring across the series. In Wellington, New Zealand let Cameron Green and Josh Hazlewood add 116 runs for the 10th wicket, a partnership that ended up proving to be decisive. There, he also made the blunder of not bowling Glenn Phillips in the first innings; Phillips, in the second dig, picked a five-fer.
In Christchurch, too, in the second innings, Southee did not turn to Phillips until Mitch Marsh and Alex Carey had built a solid stand together, though both had been dismissed by the off-spinner in the first Test.
When asked if he’d erred, Southee defended his choices.
"Hindsight is a wonderful thing," Southee said.
"But I think the amount of times we went past the bat in that first session, we felt that seam was the option. We created a few chances through that first session. I think we felt that seam was the right move."
The New Zealand skipper also defended the selection of Scott Kuggelejin, who proved to be the most ineffective bowler in the series across both sides. Picked as the fourth seamer in the New Zealand attack, Kuggelejin finished the series with 2 wickets @ 66.5. At Christchurch, the right-armer only bowled 9 overs in total, with only three of those being bowled in the fourth innings.
"He's been a been a standout performer at domestic level," Southee said of Kuggelejin.
“He added a very valuable 40-odd runs for us batting in that No.8 position and when you play the four seamers you're looking for someone who can bat a bit.
"Scott's got a handful of first-class hundreds and we saw how valuable that 40-odd runs were.
"Disappointing with the ball. But I think he's still chimed in with a couple of important wickets in the first Test in Wellington and 40-odd runs here. It's tough for everyone to play a role at times."
Should Southee quit captaincy, the Kiwis will be in a slight spot of bother. As it stands, there is no clear successor.
While Williamson voluntarily gave up captaincy 18 months ago, Tom Latham is someone who has already been overlooked by the management after the side, under his leadership, slipped to their first ever Test defeat against Bangladesh at home, two years ago.
