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BJ Watling is playing the final Test match of his cricketing career in the ongoing WTC Final after announcing his decision to retire from all formats of the game last month.

HIGHLIGHTS

  • BJ Watling will be retiring from all formats of cricket after the WTC Final vs India
  • Watling has amassed 3790 runs from 75 Tests so far and also played 28 ODIs and 5 T20Is
  • Watling is 9th on the list of most successful wicketkeeper’s with 263 dismissals in the longest format

India captain Virat Kohli’s gesture towards New Zealand wicketkeeper BJ Watling is winning hearts on social media even as the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) Final headed into the reserve day in Southampton on Wednesday.

BJ Watling is playing the final Test match of his cricketing career after announcing his decision to retire from all formats last month.

Kohli therefore, walked up to Watling just before the start of play and shook his hands, probably congratulating the 35-year-old on his outstanding career for the Black Caps.

BJ Watling has been one of the pillars of the current New Zealand side led by Kane Williamson. The 35-year-old played an integral role in their rise to the top, scoring 3773 runs, including 8 hundreds, in 73 Tests.

A reliable wicketkeeper-batsman, Watling is known for battling hard by putting a price on his wicket in the lower-middle order.

The New Zealand wicketkeeper’s immediate plan is to spend time with his family in a well-deserved break but he is already looking at coaching as a long-term plan post-retirement.

“It’s something I’m looking at. The next six months or so I’ll just kind of wing it at this stage and I’ll start to look into what options I have after the game,” Watling added.

Watling became just the 9th wicketkeeper to hit a double hundred and the first to do so against England, a feat he achieved at the Bay Oval in 2019. Watling has been involved in two 350-plus stands, one with Brendon McCullum in 2014 against India and the other with Kane Williamson the following year.

Watling is known for his solid approach to batting — someone who is hard to dislodge batting in the lower middle-order for New Zealand. The Northern Districts star was also a top wicketkeeper, having taken 263 catches (10 as outfielder) and affected 8 stumps in his decorated Test career.

Author

India today

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