Shikhar Dhawan lauds 'calm storm' Kane Williamson as New Zealand legend retires from T20Is

Published - 02 Nov 2025, 18:30 IST | Updated - 02 Nov 2025, 18:30 IST

Former Indian cricketer Shikhar Dhawan has commended Kane Williamson for a splendid T20I career after the latter announced retirement from the format. Williamson played 93 T20Is, scoring 2575 runs at a strike rate of 123.08.

Dhawan labelled Williamson, his former Sunrisers Hyderabad teammate, as a "calm storm" in the shortest format of the game at the international level. He also complimented Williamson's leadership and composed batting along the way.

Earlier in the day, Williamson had spoken on how he felt that his retirement from T20Is will be beneficial for himself as well as the team with the T20 World Cup 2026 drawing near.

"It's something that I've loved being a part of for a long period of time and I'm so grateful for the memories and experiences. It's the right time for myself and the team. It gives the team clarity for the series moving forward and ahead of their next major focus which is the T20 World Cup," Williamson was quoted by Cricbuzz.

The former skipper also underscored how Mitchell Santner has made the format his own in terms of captaincy and gelling with the team.

"There's so much T20 talent there and the next period will be important to get cricket into these guys and get them ready for the World Cup. Mitch [Santner] is a brilliant captain and leader, he's really come into his own with this team. It's now their time to push the Black Caps forward in this format and I'll be supporting from afar," he added.

Williamson clarified that he will be continuing playing Tests and ODIs for New Zealand. Williamson was recently a part of New Zealand's squad for the ODI series against England. The Black Caps will next host West Indies for a multi-format series which will include five T20Is, three ODIs and three Tests.