Kane Williamson wins New Zealand cricket’s top award

Williamson's home Test summer helped him claim the supreme award, along with the International Test Player of the Year award.

Auckland: New Zealand captain Kane Williamson was awarded the Sir Richard Hadlee Medal for the fourth time in six years, while Devon Conway and Amelia Kerr claimed double honors, at the New Zealand Cricket Awards for the 2020-21 season.

Williamson’s home Test summer helped him claim the supreme award, along with the International Test Player of the Year award and the Redpath Cup for first-class batting, after he amassed a whopping 639 runs in just four innings at an average of 159.

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Hadlee called up the Kiwi cricketer on his mobile phone to inform him about the decision to present the prestigious medal as a reward for his stellar show during the home Test summer against West Indies and Pakistan.

New Zealand Cricket tweeted the video of the conversation.

“I looked at the Test matches at homeÂ…639 runs, averaging 159, a couple of double centuries and a century,” said Hadlee over the phone as Williamson, wearing a Black Caps T-shirt, acknowledged the legend with a “thank you”.

“Well, it’s the fourth time now, so have you got space somewhere in the trophy cabinet or wherever to put these medals?” asked Hadlee jokingly.

The New Zealand batsman slammed a career-best 251 against West Indies at the Bay Oval and followed it up with a double-century against Pakistan at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch to help the home team seal a World Test Championship (WTC) final spot. The Kiwis will play India in the WTC final in June in Southampton.

“Going into the Test summer, there was that championship final (WTC final) carrot and there was a real drive there for the guys,” Williamson told Hadlee.

“Although it seemed a long way off, winning four Tests before you’ve started one is a pretty lofty goal. To spend some time at the crease personally and make contributions towards that [was great]. [I am] certainly proud as a leader and a player in this side that we were able to achieve some of those things and we’re looking forward to that final.”

Williamson is currently in India representing SunRisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League.

The award winners:

Sir Richard Hadlee Medal: Kane Williamson
Bert Sutcliffe Medal for Outstanding Services to Cricket: Jeff Crowe
International Test Player of the Year: Kane Williamson
International Women’s ODI Player of the Year: Amy Satterthwaite
International Men’s ODI Player of the Year: Devon Conway
International Women’s T20 Player of the Year: Amelia Kerr
International Men’s T20 Player of the Year: Devon Conway

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