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Find your Sport Nation frequencyWill Young hasn't done enough to earn spot in Blackcaps XI against England
Stephen Foote • November 20th, 2024 12:09 pm
Photo: Photosport
Among the numerous highlights of the Blackcaps' historic tour to India was Will Young's performance with the bat.
News of Kane Williamson's injury withdrawal tempered the already low expectations from the cricketing public heading into the three-Test series.
But Young quickly placated those concerns, showcasing an ideal Test temperament alongside measured shot selection to compile 243 runs at an average of 48.00 runs to earn the player of the series award - doing his best impersonation of the absent Kiwi great.
It's resulted in widespread demand that coach Gary Stead find a way to fit Young into his starting XI for their critical upcoming home Test series against England.
But with Williamson ready to return to the fold, the cruel reality is that - despite Young's career-best form - there's no room for the both of them in the team - and justifiably so, believes sports broadcaster Andrew Gourdie.
Gourdie likens Young's case to that of bowler Ajaz Patel. Patel was magnificent in Mumbai, where he snared a match-turning 11 wickets, but he will not feature for the Blackcaps in New Zealand due to the conditions, which heavily favour seam bowling.
Young's success against the spin-heavy Indian attack doesn't necessarily shouldn't mean we can assume the same results on the bouncier NZ pitches, Gourdie notes, where the returns have been decidedly less fruitful for the Central Districts veteran.
Through his 16 matches in Aotearoa to date, the 31-year-old averages 25.26 runs.
"Will performed superbly in the Test series over in India," he told Sport Nation's Mornings.
"But there's lots of players who perform well in India, especially spin bowlers, who don't get a look in when it comes to a home summer.
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"Just because you've performed with the bat in India doesn't mean you're entitled to start for the Blackcaps against England in a Test on home soil.
"I don't think Will has shown quite enough at the top order for New Zealand playing in New Zealand to have a serious debate about being able to occupy a position in the top order alongside Tom Latham, Kane Williamson, Devon Conway, etc."
Former Blackcaps Test opener and Sport Nation Breakfast stand-in host Mark Richardson agrees, conceding Young hadn't quite done enough to oust any of the regulars.
"He scored tough runs over there in India and I thought, when we needed someone to just knuckle in, he did a really good job," said the 38-Test international.
"But I think Conway started to show a little bit of life and he probably didn't quite do enough to go say 'you can't leave me out'."
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