A Keshav Maharaj ball landing wide outside the off stump and spinning in quite significantly rattled Jimmy Neesham’s stumps in Pune on November 1. Neesham was dismissed for an eight-ball duck and that also ended the World Cup for the all-rounder as he was not a part of the playing XI in subsequent games.
However, he was with the squad till November 15 when Kiwis lost to India in the semi-final.
Fast forward and in less than two weeks’ time, until November 30, Neesham had already played two T10 games in Abu Dhabi, bagged three wickets, and his side Northern Warriors had won two out of two.
From the tournament that is pinnacle in cricket to playing the shortest format at the Abu Dhabi T10 league in such a short span of time was quite surprising.
Neesham, however, brushed it off and said that he is a cricketer and that’s what he was doing.
“We had a few days at home, over a week at home. I don’t really need to be motivated by anything particular (to play tournaments). My job is to play cricket, that’s what I do! I am 33 years old now so I don’t have a lot of time left to play," Neesham told CricketNext.
“For me, it’s just to get the most out of myself as a cricketer as I can. I’m trying to play and get different experiences around the world and in different places obviously try and win as much as possible," he added.
Not only Neesham, but a handful of cricketers who were at the World Cup are now playing the T10 league. Angelo Mathews, Tabraiz Shamsi, and Azmatullah Omarzai are some of them, playing for the same franchise.
Neesham explained that the players take this tournament as seriously as any other competition.
“It’s just like any other tournament really. You get picked to do a job and your job is to win games of cricket. I haven’t really treated it unlike any other T20 competition. I think you’re playing amongst a group of really high-quality cricketers. The teams are too good to sort of turn up and be relaxed and expect to win. It’s just like any other competition."
Neesham’s franchise Northern Warriors had just defeated Team Abu Dhabi before the conversation started and he was ecstatic that they were well placed on the points table to reach the semi-finals.
The all-rounder bagged just two wickets after conceding 157 runs at the World Cup in three games. However, he was able to bag three wickets in just four overs in the first two games.
“Look, it’s a game where batters are going to be very aggressive, especially when you’re bowling towards the back end of the innings. So I suppose for me, it’s just about being very clear on plans and not being too predictable, and yeah we had a couple of wickets fall at the start which obviously makes it easier. Just very happy to contribute to a good team performance," Neesham said about his bowling.
To the contrary, fans still haven’t got off the hangover of the ODI World Cup. Indian fans probably never will, just like the Kiwis will always be hung over the 2019 World Cup.
Neesham first gave context to their campaign in India.
“It was probably a ‘six out of 10’, I think (rating New Zealand’s 2023 World Cup performance). Going into the tournament, if you’d said that we’d make the semi-finals, I think, most people would have said that would be a good effort. Yes, there certainly were mistakes made along the road as there always are in tournaments like that, but you too go away from it I suppose… Say it was reasonably successful. Yeah obviously disappointed to not go further than the semi-final."
He then threw light on what stops New Zealand from crossing the finish line – semi-finals in 2011, final in the 2015 and 2019 edition, and again semis in the 2023 edition – and also took a dig at England’s 2019 World Cup win.
“Better cricket teams, I think. I don’t know how you have to explain that it’s a tournament with the best teams in the world. 2015 – Australia were the best team in the world playing at home; 2019 – England were the best team in the world playing at home, and 2023 – India were the best team in the world playing at home; so it’s pretty tough to beat those kind of teams when they have a day. You can tie with them maybe."
Does the future look good for T10 tournaments?
Neesham turned down New Zealand’s central contract in 2022 owing to his commitment to different T20 and T10 leagues. He expects the T10 format to flourish and expand in the coming times.
“I think, we have already seen it expand into the African T10 league (Zim-Afro T10) as well. You know it’s a good festival-style competition. I think I compare it to the Seven Circuit (World Rugby Sevens Series) which is happening up in Dubai at the moment as well where you have a three or four-day tournament which is like a festival and that moves around the world… Sort of a regular occurrence around the globe and I’m sure that’s what the organizers will be aiming for. The players love the format, it’s short and fast, it’s exciting and certainly has all the ingredients to become that kind of global circuit."
The all-rounder also went bullish on seeing a T10 World Cup 10 – 15 years down the line.
“Anything can happen, I think. The ICC is basically driven by revenue and if they see T10 as a money spinner for world cricket then I’m sure the ICC will move in that direction."
Neesham also emphasised the fact that tournaments like these allow players from associate nations to participate shoulder-to-shoulder with the big names and grow professionally.
“I think that’s partly due to tournaments like this where you know fringe players like UAE players and associate nation players have a chance to play against the best players in the world and I think it has a huge part to play in the likes of the Netherlands and Afghanistan playing as well as they have in the recent World Cup.
“And with any luck we can continue to expand the game like that around the world and hopefully in eight or twelve years, we got a World Cup where teams like the UAE and Scotland and Ireland and the likes are playing and footing it against the boys as well I think, Neesham said.
Neesham also said that the top teams continuing to play each other will not be favourable for the sport in longer run.
“I actually think it’s vital for the survival of the sport moving forward that we have strong teams in that second tier of international cricket. Because as much as people think it will, Australia, England and India playing each other over and over again is not sustainable really."
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