"It's almost series-by-series": Kane Williamson on his international future

Williamson, who is currently playing for New Zealand in the ongoing third Test against the West Indies at Bay Oval, his home ground, it remains unclear whether he will be available for the upcoming three-match ODI series in India in January 2026.

The 35-year-old retired from T20Is in November and is among a group of players who hold a casual contract with New Zealand Cricket. (NZC).

"Yeah, it's almost series-by-series, and like I say after this, there's a pretty large block away from the group as well, and there'll be more conversations had," Williamson said at his press conference in Mount Maunganui as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

"Yeah, so just kind of cross those bridges as we come, and like I mentioned earlier, just with the balance in mind for the young family," Williamson added.

Previously, Williamson informed NZC about balancing his time between his young family and his international commitments. "Yeah, I mean, my position's still the same," Williamson said. "It's the balance, and I've got a young family, and that takes a lot of my time and attention now, and I'm still enjoying my cricket. As long as that's at the forefront...and New Zealand Cricket have been really helpful and respectful of that as well.

"And so whilst I'm still here, I want to try and contribute as much as I can and give to the team as much as I can, and it's great to be involved in this series at home again. I mean, there's quite a big break post this, so plenty more time to weigh all these things up," he added.

The right-handed batter Williamson is New Zealand's leading run-getter in Test cricket. The 35-year-old has amassed 9461 runs in 108 matches at an average of nearly 55.

If Williamson makes himself available for the upcoming tours, he could become the first New Zealand player to hit 10,000 runs in Test cricket. However, Williamson said that numbers don't drive him.

"That's funny, eh? Like, you play one Test and you're pretty stoked and then you hang around for a bit and then you have other conversations like maybe the question you were asking (10,000 Test runs)," Williamson said. "For me it's about contribution [to the team], you know. I've never really played for, you know... just never used this team for my own personal gain, and I know cricket's sort of saturated in stats, but you're wanting to go out and contribute to a team that you care about, so whatever runs you get are not really yours, they're for the team, and so what you end up on is whatever it is, and there's so many factors to that, you know.

"There's the amount of games you play, there's the amount of opportunities that you get to bat, blah, blah, blah. But that's not really why I love the game, and so for me it's about continuing to commit to the reasons why I love it, and that's being a part of a group and trying to contribute as much as you can," he added. (ANI)