This team, city of Hyderabad will always be special to me: Kane Williamson’s farewell message to SRH

"To the franchise, my teammates, the staff and the always amazing #orangearmy - thank you for making it an enjoyable 8 years. This team and the city of Hyderabad will always be very special to me #orangearmy," said Williamson

New Delhi: Following his release from the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad, New Zealand captain Kane Williamson thanked the team, his teammates, staff and fans for making his journey as a player enjoyable.

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Tuesday released Williamson ahead of the IPL mini-auction in December.

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The batter took to Instagram to share a farewell message with his franchise.

“To the franchise, my teammates, the staff and the always amazing #orangearmy – thank you for making it an enjoyable 8 years. This team and the city of Hyderabad will always be very special to me #orangearmy,” said Williamson on Instagram.

Williamson did not have a great IPL 2022. In 13 matches, he could score only 216 runs in 13 matches at an average of 19.64. Only one fifty came out of his bat. His strike rate was also extremely sub-par at 93.51.

This year, he has scored 382 runs in 12 T20Is at an average of 34.72 with two half-centuries. While these statistics are solid, his strike rate of 119.00 in the shorter format has come under the scanner.

He has represented SRH since 2015 for the entirety of his IPL career. In 76 matches, he has scored 2,101 runs at an average of 36.22. 18 half-centuries have come out of his bat, with the best score of 89.

His most prolific season was in 2018, when he scored 735 runs in 17 matches at an average of 52.50. Williamson scored eight half-centuries, with the best score of 84. He finished as the leading run-scorer in that season.

Williamson is also part of the team which won its maiden IPL title in 2016.