“It’s great to be back.”
Those were the first words uttered by BLACKCAPS captain Kane Williamson as he linked up with his team in Zimbabwe this week.
Fresh from his county stint with Yorkshire, the 25-year-old met teammates at Pretoria airport on Wednesday, before the squad flew to Harare.
“The last time we were together was the World T20 and there was some fond memories there,” he said.
“After a bit of time apart from each other it’s always exciting to join the group again and it’s nice to be here in Zimbabwe.”
Williamson’s men will play an Invitational XI in a three day warm-up on Friday before relocating to Bulawayo for two Tests against the hosts.
“It’s a big series for us, we certainly know Zimbabwe in their own conditions are a stiff challenge and we will have to play our best cricket as well as be smart with how we go about it.”
The classy right hander dismissed any concerns over his own workload and said he was excited by the action packed nine months ahead.
“I feel fine. International cricket these days is about managing your time so you can stay as fresh as possible with the cricket coming up and I’m happy where it’s at.”
Despite having already captained his country 34 times in internationals, the opening match in Bulawayo will be his first in charge of the all important Test side.
Williamson’s refusing to be daunted by the challenge of becoming New Zealand’s 29th Test captain.
“Haven’t thought too much about it, but now it’s exciting to be here and building up to it and it will be great to lead the lads out in that first Test match.”
“Hopefully we continue looking to be aggressive with our tactics, but at the same time skinning it differently in different countries. It may be different in Bulawayo depending on what the surface presents.”
