WTC Final: “Kane Williamson up there with Virat Kohli, but doesn’t have 100 mn followers on Instagram” - Michael Vaughan
Former England captain Michael Vaughan has stated that New Zealand captain Kane Williamson is as good as his Indian counterpart Virat Kohli across all formats of the game. He, however, claimed that Kane Williamson does not get his due because of Kohli’s crazy fan following on social media.
Kohli, Kane Williamson, Steve Smith and Joe Root are recognized as the Fab Four of international cricket by experts.
Kohli and Kane Williamson will lead their respective sides when India face New Zealand in the World Test Championship (WTC) final, starting in Southampton on June 18.
According to Vaughan, Kane Williamson would have been rated much higher had he been an Indian.
Speaking to Spark Sport, Vaughan opined:
“If Kane Williamson was Indian, he would be the greatest player in the world. But he’s not because you’re not allowed to say that Virat Kohli is not the greatest, because you’d get an absolute pelting on social media. So, you all say Virat is the best purely to get few more clicks and likes, few more numbers following here. Kane Williamson, across formats, is equally the best. I think the way he plays, the calm demeanour, his humbleness, the fact that he is silent about what he does.”
Vaughan was massively trolled for his sly comments on Kohli and Indian pitches during England’s recent tour of India. And his statement on the Indian captain is also not likely to go down well with Kohli’s fans.
Taking an indirect dig at the social media culture which dictates popularity, Vaughan added about the Kane Williamson vs Kohli debate:
“Kane Williamson has mostly had success. I’m not just saying it because I’m speaking to you guys in New Zealand but I think Kane Williamson is right up there with the great players across the three formats and certainly matches Virat Kohli. It’s just that he doesn’t have the 100 million followers on Instagram and doesn’t earn the $30-40 million or whatever Virat gets every year for his commercial endorsements.”
Kane Williamson may score a few more runs than Virat Kohli this summer: Michael Vaughan
Although Virat Kohli had an impressive tour of England in 2018, scoring 593 runs at an average of 59.30, Vaughan backed Kane Williamson to score more runs this summer.
According to Vaughan, Kohli has struggled in English conditions, keeping aside the 2018 tour. The former England captain stated:
“I think recently, a lot of pundits have been shouting for him (Kohli), whether he likes that or not, I’m not too sure. In English conditions, against the moving ball, Virat did enjoy success the last time he came in, but other than that he has struggled.”
On the other hand, he praised Kane Williamson's work ethic and said:
“In terms of quality and what he brings on the pitch and his consistency, I wouldn’t back against Kane Williamson getting more runs. I think Kane may score a few more runs than Virat this summer.”
While Kohli will feature in the WTC final and five Tests against England, Kane Williamson will be seen in action in three Tests in the UK - two matches against England and the WTC final against India in Southampton.