New Zealand will celebrate their World Test Championship’s glorious victory with a week-long nationwide tour with the mace later this month. The tour will start on July 26 in Whangarei and will end in Invercargill on August 1. The tours will have Auckland, Tauranga, Hamilton, New Plymouth, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin as the stops.
New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson, Kyle Jamieson, Devon Conway, and Colin De Grandhomme, however, will not be part of the celebration at the home, as they all are currently part of their respective County sides, and are also preparing for “The Hundred”. The rest of the team will be part of the celebration after they complete their managed self-isolation quarantine.
Spinners Will Somerville and Todd Astle, and opening batsman Jeet Raval will also take part in the celebration. However, they were not been the part of the WTC final squad, but still, they played a major role in helping Blackcaps to reach the finals.
“It’s quickly become apparent that Kiwis want an opportunity to be part of, and to share in this historic achievement. We’ve been inundated with requests to do something so that New Zealanders can join in with the team and share the moment,” said NZC chief executive David White.
At first, we thought the time-out in managed isolation and the length of time since the win would dampen enthusiasm for a public celebration, but we have been persuaded to think again,” he concluded.
NZ pacer Tim Southee also showed his pleasure on the celebration tour and said, “I guess it’s a great way to give back to the fans that’ve supported us – not only the last couple of years through the Test Championship but for a long time.”
“For some of these smaller places that don’t get a lot of international cricket or see a lot of cricketers, it’s a great chance to go back to those smaller towns… I know growing up in a small town, anytime there’s something special like that, it’s always a great occasion. Hopefully, we can give back and hopefully give kids a bit of future hope of future cricketers,” he concluded.