Former wicketkeeper-batter Ian Smith opined that it will take a long time for New Zealand to find a replacement for Trent Boult after the pacer announced the ongoing T20 World Cup as his last showpiece event.
After New Zealand’s nine-wicket win over Uganda at Tarouba, the left-arm speedster said, “Speaking on behalf of myself this will be my last T20 World Cup, so yeah, that’s all I have to say.”
Boult has been the backbone of New Zealand’s pace attack across formats with 317 Test wickets, 211 ODI wickets, and 81 T20I wickets to his name. After choosing not to renew his central contract with New Zealand in recent years, Boult has made only sporadic appearances for the national team, usually at major tournaments like the ICC events.
Smith said Boult’s absence will create a void of the left-arm pacer in the New Zealand squad due to a lack of options.
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“In New Zealand, when we’d think about replacing Trent Boult, we’ll have to dig very deep. And right now we can’t, we haven’t got a left-arm bowler of world-class ability in our ranks at the moment,” ICC quoted Smith as saying.
The veteran cricketer said Boult’s impact was similar to Sir Richard Hadlee, one of the class all-rounders in the 1970s and 80s, who finished his career with 431 Test wickets, still a New Zealand record. Smith feels that it will take a long time to replace Boult in New Zealand cricket.
“There are kids coming through but it will be a long time, a long, long time just as it was with Richard Hadlee. A long time until we replace or come close to replacing what Trent Boult has done,” he said.
Smith added that both Boult and Hadlee had rhythm in their bowling which made them demanding in world cricket. “(Boult) He’s one of those players, who has a nice rhythm about what he does. I have played cricket with Richard Hadlee, and his great thing was rhythm.
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“His action hasn’t changed over the years really, he has a nice flow about doing things. He’s not the quickest bowler in the world but he’s the most demanding,” Smith said.
Kane Williamson-led side faced a first-round exit in the T20 World Cup after consecutive defeats to Afghanistan and West Indies respectively. They will play their last group-stage match against Papua New Guinea on Monday.
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