New Zealand vs South Africa: Kane Williamson explains the skill and thought behind his three best shots in whiteball cricket | Cricket News

Kane Williamson remembers the moment from the 2019 World Cup game against South Africa rather well. The equation had read 12 runs needed from seven balls, and Lungi Ngidi was in the midst of an inspiring over. A boundary was needed.Guess what shot Williamson went for. A late cut. He let the ball come to him, arresting all urges and twitches to the contrary, and as the ball squeezed between short third man and the wicketkeeper, South African hopes sank.
It’s the kind of shot that Williamson is likely to deploy in the semifinal – the least-risk well-honed strokes that he is known for – three strokes in particular: the late cut, the back-foot punch, and the sweep.
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“That shot is what comes to mind when I think about the late-cuts I played,” Williamson told The Indian Express much before the ICC Champions Trophy, where New Zealand will face South Africa in Wednesday’s semifinal. It’s not even a late-cut, the way he plays it. The master of the late cut in the 1990s, Arjuna Ranatunga took the riskier option; the bat-face would open and just before impact, it would seem the off-stump could get knocked back. Williamson has also tamed the shot.
“I play it like a dab, with as much as a vertical bat-face as possible, letting the ball do the work. (Unlike Ranatunga), my bat-lift is higher and I would bring the bat down and try to place it in line.”
It’s not known if Ranatunga’s was a natural shot, but Williamson says he certainly didn’t have it in his development years. It’s a shot he picked up in his quest to widen his repertoire, triggered watching two modern-day South African greats.
“I remember watching AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla in my earlier years. You could see the way they were evolving their game. Forcing good-area deliveries against high-quality bowling is tougher. I watched them deflect the ball. I thought I might try and practise that. It’s a shot you are always trying to touch on in practice, make it efficient. I do recall thinking it was a nice option,” Williamson says.Story continues below this ad
An encore
A year after he downed South Africa, he would use that shot to good effect in the IPL against Royal Challengers Bangalore. The bowler was Navdeep Saini and Virat Kohli had set the field with a short third and men at extra cover suggested he was expecting an on-the-up punch. Williamson remembers that shot as well.
“It was again similar, late in the innings. It’s a good ball for a seam bowler; trying to use the pace, finer boundary option. Saini has good pace; kind of instinctive and it’s nice that it came off.”
Just like Ranatunga, Williamson also looks at that shot near the end of an innings when most others try to heave and wallop the ball.
“It’s handy at a slightly later stage as it’s a shot that’s not expected. You are looking at options, what the bowler is looking to do, what’s the field, and if the ball is there, you commit. It’s different from the start of an innings, with the ball swinging; it’s just about reading the game and using the options. I was lucky it came off.”Story continues below this ad
However, the opposition bowlers know there isn’t much luck, but pure skill and a lot of modesty.
Williamson doesn’t play the horizontal version o the back-foot punch, but gets close to the ball, rather lets it get close to him and plays it very late. (AP)
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The second shot Williamson often deploys is the sweep against the spinners. Sometimes he shuffles to the off-side and tries to access the area behind square. South Africa have a left-arm spinner in Keshav Maharaj and the wry one in Tabraiz Shamsi.
“It’s more timing and conditions. If it’s stopping and turning, it can be a risky decision – and I have made plenty of those. It comes back to preparation in the nets. I tend not to play it, irrespective of what the bowler is trying; it depends on the field, you factor in options, where he is bowling. It’s about reading the game rather than thinking that this is the only option I have and it has to happen. You don’t always need to play the sweep; you have to be smart.”
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Williamson playing a late cut against India in Dubai in their league stage encounter. (AP)
Then there is that classic Williamson backfoot punch to the seamers. He doesn’t play the horizontal version, but gets close to the ball, rather lets it get close to him, and plays it very late. Sometimes he even gets both feet in the air, and still nails it.
Williamson smiles, pauses and says reflectively, “of the three shots, this one is most instinctive, I guess, for me. Most natural of the three. Because I am slightly shorter, you get up on the toes, or even higher, to counter the bounce. The trajectory is steeper for a shorter batsman like me; my options are different from a taller batsman.
“The back-foot punch also depends on the surface and type of bowler, and if the ball is coming on to the bat. Similar deliveries get run down to third man, perhaps a little shorter. It’s the same mindset behind that – the idea is to access different parts of the ground, play late and relatively with a straight bat. Use the pace, basically. It’s a shot I play in all formats. You work with what you are experiencing and sometimes you are in the air, and you are still playing close and basic,” he says.
All the three shots could come into play on a batting-friendly surface in Lahore. If they come off, New Zealand could well be the ones challenging India on a slower surface where the expertise and experience of Williamson, as he showed in the last league game, would be most valuable.