Mitchell Santner: The all-rounder from New Zealand is all set to play his first Test match in England on the ongoing tour.
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New Zealand all-rounder Mitchell Santner considers the recently concluded unofficial warm-up match between Williamson XI and Latham XI as “pretty good”. In what was their only practice match before the first Test against England starting from June 2, Santner claims the match to be a “competitive game”.
“It was a pretty good game in the end. Everyone that batted and bowled were pretty excited and it was quite a competitive game. Pretty good wickets as well,” Santner was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz upon his arrival in London where the first Test will be played.
Representing Williamson XI, Santner scored a well-made 41* on the second day of the match as he looks set to play his first Test in England. The 29-year old player also recollected fond memories of last playing at the Lord’s during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 final.
Tea. Big session post lunch. Wickets for Henry and Bracewell but a strong partnership since between Daryl Mitchell 64* and Mitchell Santner 41*. Williamson XI 218/3 heading into the final session of play. #ENGvNZ pic.twitter.com/R0lVzbFmuc
— BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) May 28, 2021
Mitchell Santner looking forward to batting job on England tour
Considering how hard it is for spinners to consistently make it to a Test XI in New Zealand, Santner was confident about his style of bowlers playing more of a role in the English conditions. Yet to cement his Test spot, Santner disclosed the format being a “pinnacle” for him.
“Playing Test cricket is still the pinnacle. No doubt. It can be challenging in New Zealand, at times, you know when it [pitch] is green. Looking forward to overseas. Here, spinners play more of a role. That’d be nice,” Santner said.
In addition to his 41 Test wickets in 23 Tests, Santner has also scored 766 runs in the format comprising of a century and a couple of half-centuries. Having not justified his batting potential in 31 Test innings in a six-year career, Santner not just hinted at New Zealand’s possible combination for the Lord’s Test but also talked about the emphasis on his batting at No. 7 on this tour.
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“Not just focusing on the bowling but will try to get those runs in the lower-order with the rest of the bowlers. With the balance of the team, we are going with four quicks. I guess my job is to get some runs as well.
“Nice to spend some time in the middle [in the practice match]. The last few months have been white ball and hadn’t had much match practice. You can bat in the nets but time in the middle is more valuable,” Santner added.
