When New Zealand is 131 for 6 in a 350-run chase in Hyderabad, Mitchell Santner is as calm as ever. When several reporters at his news conference in Raipur compel him to greet the locals in the customary manner, he maintains his composure. When he bowls to Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma in Indore, where the distance between the boundaries on all sides is about 60 metres, he maintains his composure.
Santner thinks one of his leadership skills is his calm demeanour, which frequently echoes that of Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni and coach Stephen Fleming. Santner will be in command of New Zealand’s T20I team in India because Kane Williamson and Tim Southee will be taking a break before the home Test series against England in February. Santner has commanded New Zealand in 10 T20Is prior to Friday’s match.
Yes, I suppose [being cool] comes naturally to me, and it has been like that for a while now “On the eve of the opening T20I in Ranchi, Santner stated. “It doesn’t get much better than captaining another series in India, but there are definitely jitters and excitement involved. Consequently, I’m eager to go.
They both [MS Dhoni and Stephen Fleming] strike me as being quite composed and level-headed, which I admire. Therefore, I believe that in that regard, I am comparable [to them], and for the past few years, dealing with MS has been a really great experience. I suppose it’s pleasant for him to be back in Ranchi, where he grew up. The same can be said for Flem; he maintains a really calm demeanour, which is something we also attempt to accomplish in this [New Zealand] setup.
Bilateral T20I series don’t have the same significance they did in 2022 and 2021, which were T20 World Cup years, because 2023 is an ODI World Cup year. But Santner thinks that New Zealand might still learn something from this three-match T20I series in India for the ODIs.
