Kiwi captain Kane Williamson speaks about CWC19 PReperations

May 24 (CRICKETNMORE) - Kane Williamson isn’t worried about New Zealand suffering any ODI ring rust as they look to go one better than four years ago at the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019.

The Black Caps face warm-up games against India this Saturday and West Indies next Tuesday but those will be their first ODIs since an 88-run victory over Bangladesh on February 19 – more than three months ago.

Pretty much every other country has been playing regular ODIs since then but skipper Williamson is convinced the IPL and white-ball practice back in New Zealand will have provided sufficient preparation for his men.

“The nature of having a tournament on the other side of the world meant we didn’t have our domestic competitions going on or any ODI series in our own country,” he explained.

“That’s just the nature of beast but we had plenty of players involved with the IPL and some warm-ups in Australia, which was very beneficial.

“The international game is evolving and ever-changing – you’re playing all over the world at different times, so you’re just trying to prepare mentally as well as you can.

“This is obviously a significant tournament and one we’re excited for. Our preparation has been interesting and we’re looking forward to the two warm-up matches now.

“There’s obviously a big individual component to international cricket and lots of ways to build momentum – it has been great to get together in camp over the last few days.

“We haven’t played together as a team for a couple of months but we’re not the only ones. It means all the players are excited to be in camp, which is refreshing, and we’re looking forward to getting going. The squad are together and it’s important that we gel.”

Williamson was speaking at the official captain’s media launch in east London, where all ten skippers gathered just seven days before the competition gets underway.

Four years ago, New Zealand made it all the way to the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup final before they were dismantled by a rampant Australia team in Melbourne.

Of the XI that played in that final, Williamson, Martin Guptill, Ross Taylor, Matt Henry and Trent Boult are all in the squad again this time around and the captain is adamant the Black Caps have the perfect blend to succeed.

“We have a few guys who were in last World Cup so have some experience,” added Williamson. “but there are lots of new players also, which is good.

“There has been a lot of talk around rankings, favourites and underdogs. But all the teams are balanced – on the day anything can happen, which should mean some very exciting cricket.

“We want to be playing our brand and style of cricket as well as we can, so that’s our focus for the next six or seven weeks.”

ICC Media Release