New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson is not surprised by Sunrisers Hyderabad’s decision to release him from the team ahead of the 2023 Indian Premier League auctions. The franchise announced its final retention list on Tuesday, November 16. Kane Williamson was one of the big names missing from the retained players list.
The New Zealand cricketer was retained by the Sunrisers Hyderabad during the 2022 Indian Premier League auction for INR 15 crore. He led the team in the season, however, they did not have a great season, finishing eighth on the points table. Kane Williamson’s form was one of the reasons for their dismal performance in the tournament. In thirteen matches, he scored 216 runs at an average of 19.64. His strike rate of 93.50 throughout the season, was a huge concern for the franchise.
Kane Williamson has played 76 IPL matches and has scored 2101 runs at an average of 36.22. He has 18 half-centuries to his name in the tournament so far. Sunrisers Hyderabad’s decision to release Kane Williamson did not come as a surprise to the New Zealand skipper. He said as quoted by India Today,
“It wasn’t a surprise when it [retention list] was officially released. That’s the way it goes, I had a really enjoyable time at SRH, I have a lot of fond memories.”
IPL is certainly an amazing completion to be a part of: Kane Williamson
New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson further expressed that the Indian Premier League is a great competition to be a part of. He added that there is a lot of cricket coming up for him across formats. Kane Williamson will be leading the New Zealand T20I team against India starting on November 18 in Wellington. Ahead of the series, the Kiwi captain said,
“There are a lot of competitions around the world, and the IPL is certainly an amazing completion to be a part of. You see players play for different teams all the time. There are a lot of options, lot of cricket, so for me, I love playing all formats.”
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