“He Will Be Missed”: Tim Southee Bids Farewell To Ross Taylor Ahead Of New Zealand Veteran’s Retirement

New Zealand pacer Tim Southee expressed his emotions after veteran Kiwi batter Ross Taylor announced his retirement from the international cricket post team’s current home season. New Zealand‘s upcoming Test series against Bangladesh will be Taylor’s farewell from the longest format of the game before he plays his final ODIs against Australia and Netherlands. “Any time a player retires, it’s a messy moment especially when someone who has played and been a regular in the squad for such a long period of time. It will take some adjusting to look around and not see Ross as a player or have him in this side. That assurance of having a quality player around, and the runs he’s had and the job he’s done for this side over a long period of time has been amazing,” said Tim Southee in a statement.

Southee elaborated on Taylor’s changing room demeanor and how his quiet presence will be missed by the team.

“He’s been a regular feature of the changing room for such a long period of time. He’s a quiet sort of guy and sort of sits back and enjoys a good time, in sitting back and enjoying a wine or a drink after a Test win are moments he’ll cherish forever. He’s a great guy to have around the changing room. Like I said, he’s quite reserved, but he will be missed… It’ll take a bit of time for guys to look around and not see Ross sitting there,” he said.

Taylor will play his 111th and 112th test matches against Bangladesh in the upcoming Test series from January 1, 2022. Southee and Taylor have played international test cricket alongside each other for the last 12 years.

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The first match is scheduled to be played at Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, Tauranga from January 1-5. The second and final test match will be played at Hagley Oval, Christchurch on January 9 and conclude on January 13.

The test series between New Zealand and Bangladesh will be streamed live on Amazon Prime Video.