CRICKET: New Zealand have learned lessons from T20 World Cup flop - Neesham

BENGALURU – New Zealand all-rounder James Neesham says the Black Caps are determined to avoid another early exit at the T20 World Cup, following a disappointing campaign in 2024.

Neesham admitted that poor preparation derailed New Zealand’s performance in last year’s tournament in the West Indies but assured fans that the team will leave no stone unturned ahead of next month’s edition in India and Sri Lanka, where they will seek their first T20 World Cup title.

To ensure proper match practice, New Zealand will play a five-game T20 series against India from January 21-31.

“Obviously, the 2024 World Cup in the West Indies, we were very under-prepared,” Neesham told Reuters via video call.

“We didn’t have any games going into the tournament, which wasn’t ideal, coming off the back of the Indian Premier League and a lot of guys being busy over there. We’ve rectified that, and we’ve got a good series against a strong team getting into the World Cup.”

The 35-year-old said playing India on their home turf would help New Zealand finalize their starting XI for the tournament, which begins on February 7.

“It’ll be good to have five games to test ourselves against them and hopefully get a couple of good wins, some good results, but mainly to find our combinations and get ourselves well-oiled before the World Cup,” Neesham added.

Although Neesham remains a regular in New Zealand’s T20 squad, he has not played in the 50-over format for the national team since the 2023 World Cup.

“I’m certainly still available for that format,” he said.

“I haven’t quite decided what my future looks like internationally. I’ll probably think about that during this World Cup and make a decision one way or the other.”

Neesham also highlighted the challenges posed by New Zealand’s new casual contract system, introduced last September. The system allows marquee players to join lucrative T20 leagues while remaining available for international duty, but it has created a “weird little limbo” for players.

“The model risks weakening New Zealand if too many top players are absent,” Neesham explained.

“You either have to have white-ball contracts specifically for these players that are worth a fair amount of money to keep them available for New Zealand, or you need to let players go freelance and pick and choose. Currently, there’s probably not the depth to compete internationally if 10, 11, or 12 of our top guys are unavailable.”

He added that a proposed domestic T20 competition might encourage players to accept New Zealand contracts and commit fully to the national team.

New Zealand will begin their World Cup campaign against Afghanistan in Chennai on February 8.

-Reporting by Suramya Kaushik in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford/Reuters