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Opinion

Is Ross Taylor’s T20I career finished?

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Roar Guru
23rd December, 2020
12

When Devon Conway became eligible to play for New Zealand in August 2020, it would create a selection headache for the Blackcaps selectors.

The South African-born batsman had been churning out the runs for Wellington over the past few seasons, with Conway’s ineligibility robbing him of an international cap in the past for New Zealand.

With Ross Taylor reaching the final years of his international career, questions are being raised as to whether Conway has permanently taken Taylor’s T20 spot in the New Zealand team.

Having moved to New Zealand in August 2017, Conway has impressed at domestic level for Wellington. Here are Conway’s numbers from the Super Smash (New Zealand’s premier T20 competition) over the past few seasons

2017-18 Super Smash – six innings, 165 runs, 117 balls faced, 41.25 average, 141.02 strike rate, zero hundreds, one fifty

2018-19 Super Smash – nine innings, 363 runs, 252 balls faced, 45.37 average, 144.04 strike rate, one hundred, zero fifties

2019-20 Super Smash – 11 innings, 543 runs, 374 balls faced, 145.18 strike rate, 67.87 average, one hundred, five fifties

In the past two seasons of the Super Smash, Conway has been the leading run scorer in the tournament. With a compact technique, Conway is an accumulator, but he’s also shown in the shortest format that he can score at a fast pace.

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Following his stellar past few seasons for Wellington, Conway made his T20 debut for New Zealand against the West Indies in November 2020. Chasing 176 in a 16 over game at Eden Park, Conway scored a composed 41 off 29 – allowing Jimmy Neesham to tee off as the Blackcaps won in the final over.

Conway’s performances haven’t been a one-off in T20 internationals so far. In four innings, Conway has scored 174 runs with two fifties, a strike rate of 151.3 and an average of 58.

While it is a very small sample size, Conway has shown that he can be New Zealand’s long term no.4 in T20 internationals, which was needed for the Blackcaps with two consecutive T20 World Cups in the next two years.

Ross Taylor is a champion player, one of the greatest batsmen New Zealand have produced. But it seems his time in T20 internationals is up.

As he hasn’t played in the Super Smash due to international duty, here are Ross Taylor’s T20I numbers since the beginning of 2017.

2017 – one innings, 20 runs, 13 balls faced, 20.0 average, 153.85 strike rate

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2018 – ten innings, 191 runs, 151 balls faced, 38.2 average, 126.49 strike rate, zero hundreds, zero fifties

2019 – 11 innings, 276 runs, 220 balls faced, 27.6 average, 125.45 strike rate, zero hundreds, zero fifties

2020 – seven innings, 166 runs, 130 balls faced, 33.2 average, 127.69 average, two fifties

In the past four years, Ross Taylor and Devon Conway have scored the same number of T20I fifties, despite Taylor playing 25 innings more than Conway. Add to the fact that Taylor was dropped from New Zealand’s T20 squad versus Pakistan and it seems that the writing is on the wall for Taylor in T20Is.

Another plus point is that Conway can keep and with Colin Munro likely to take Tim Seifert’s spot, Conway could emerge as New Zealand’s T20 keeper unless someone like Glenn Phillips will be in the New Zealand XI.

For years, there were worries on how New Zealand would move on from players such as Ross Taylor and the match winning abilities he brings.

But the Blackcaps have found a capable replacement in Devon Conway in the T20 team. With the way Conway has been scoring runs at List A and first class level, it won’t be long before he permanently replaces Ross Taylor in all formats.

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