Southee rates Williamson above Kohli, Smith and Root in Fab Four

New Zealand captain Tim Southee rated his former leader Kane Williamson as the best among the top four Test batters of the current era- India’s Virat Kohli, Australia’s Steve Smith and England’s Joe Root, also known as the Fab Four. 

Speaking in the pre-match press conference ahead of their one-off Test against Afghanistan, starting Monday (September 9), Southee credited his experience of bowling to Williamson in the nets for arriving at his decision. 

"I have probably bowled the most to Kane in the nets. It is always a tough challenge for us as bowlers to be tested by one of the best in the world in the nets day in and day out. To see Kane do it first hand has been amazing to watch. The others are phenomenal as well. There is a reason why they are called the Fab Four," said the 35-year-old. 

Southee, who has played all formats of the game for the country, also opined on the raging debate of club vs country when it comes to New Zealand cricket. Increasingly, players are opting to have flexible contracts with the country to try and push themselves to play more league cricket and thereby increase their revenue streams, making the most of their talents while they can. 

The recent additions to the trend started by Trent Boult are Finn Allen and Devon Conway. They both declined the central contracts, Conway later opted for a flexible contract which would allow him to play leagues and be available for the country when the Blackcaps need him. 

“The NZC is working with the players and they are trying to come up with a solution that’s best suited for the players and New Zealand cricket as a whole,” said the Whangarei-born, who has 765 international wickets to his name across formats. 

Reckoning that every possible talent at their disposal makes it better for the country, Southee, who is also the ODI skipper of the side, said, “It is a small cricketing country in terms of numbers. It will be great to have as many people as possible available for New Zealand, but the way the world is going, it is getting harder and harder.”

Southee, alongside countryman Ross Taylor, Australia’s David Warner and Kohli are the only four players to have represented their country in 100 matches in every format of the game.

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