Published 17:06 IST, January 6th 2021
BJ Watling interrupts Williamson's briefing to get NZ skipper's autograph, says 'Big Fan!'
In his post-match press conference on Wednesday, Williamson described the achievement of sitting atop the table as a 'special moment' for New Zealand
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Riding on Kane Williamson's consistent and impeccable performances in the two-match Test series, New Zealand cruised to the top of the ICC Test Rankings on Wednesday after an empathic series win over Pakistan. The Kiwi skipper has been the leading figure of the squad as the Blackcaps set their eyes on the prize - the World Test Championship finale. Scoring 388 runs and grabbing a wicket also earned Williamson the Player of the Series award on Wednesday as New Zealand clinched the second victory of the series by an innings and 176 runs.
In his post-match press conference on Wednesday, Williamson described the achievement of sitting atop the table as a 'special moment' for the team and also lauded the performances by young guns Daryl Mitchell and Kyle Jamieson. As the Kiwi skipper continued to answer questions from media persons, Williamson was interrupted by teammate BJ Watling as the wicketkeeper-batsman asked for his autograph. Watling walked in with a match jersey and as Williamson signed it for him, the wicketkeeper said, "Big fan!"
Watch the moment here:
"What is going on?" 🤔
— ICC (@ICC) January 6, 2021
Not much, just BJ Watling fanboying Kane Williamson in the middle of a press conference 😄pic.twitter.com/aLJ2ypQUef
Reflecting on New Zealand's performance after the series win against Pakistan, Williamson said, "Its been an incredible couple of games. Obviously, a huge amount of effort goes into every Test match and we know that we are up against a very quality side. Looking at the result on paper, we know that it is pretty much in our favour. It is a game of small margins and at times we have won with those margins and at times we have had a little bit of luck go our way as well. That can convert into either some good partnerships or something effective with the ball. I am very realistic about that. I am very pleased with our effort throughout these last two games. It's a very proud moment for the team at the end of our summer to reflect that we have achieved something very cool."
New Zealand top Test Rankings table
New Zealand defeated Pakistan in the second Test at Christchurch by an innings and 176 runs to topple Australia from the top spot of the ICC Test Championship table. Courtesy of their 2-0 series win over Pakistan, the Kiwis managed to grab the top spot for the first time in the Championship. After having won the first Test comfortably last week, skipper Kane Williamson led from the front as he scored his fourth Test double century (238). He was ably supported by middle-order batsman Henry Nicholls (157) as the duo added 369 runs for the fourth-wicket stand. Tail-ender batsman Daryl Mitchell chipped in with an unbeaten 102 as the Kiwis declared their innings at 659/6. Brilliant performance by youngster Kyle Jamieson, who picked 11 wickets in the match, ensured that the Kiwis wrap up the series early.
17:06 IST, January 6th 2021