Kyle Jamieson, the New Zealand pacer admits that he was so nervous during the final moments of the World Test Championship final against India that he had to hide in the bathroom while his teammates batted.
Kyle Jamieson produced a man-of-the-match performance claiming 5 wickets in the first and 2 in the second innings to help New Zealand claim the World Test Championship over India last week, taking seven wickets at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton.
Kyle Jamieson Escaped To The Bathroom To Avoid Watching Tense Final 6th Day When New Zealand Batted
While he was ruthless on the field, Kyle Jamieson says he had to, at times, retreat to the bathroom to escape the “nerve-racking” final day as his teammates batsmen Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor brought it home with the bat.
“It was probably the toughest period of cricket I’ve been a part of, in terms of watching,” Jamieson told Country Sports Breakfast on Gold AM.
“We were sitting inside and actually watching on TV. There was a bit of a delay but it seemed like every ball the Indian crowd was up and about and I was like ‘jeez it’s a wicket’ or something like that, but it turned out it was just a block or a single. It was pretty tough to watch. I actually tried to at times to go to the bathroom where there was no noise to just get away from it for a while because it was quite nerve-racking. But it was nice to have Kane and Ross out there, two of our greatest ever batters really to calm the nerves and finish the job the way they did.”
“It was good. Nothing too crazy,” Jamieson said about the post-game celebrations. “We just spent time in the changing room and back in the team room. Obviously with the whole Covid situation, there wasn’t a whole lot of getting out and about.
“It was just nice, to be fair, to spend time together and enjoy the time together after a couple of years of hard work and a long tour as well. Just to sit back and enjoy each other’s company was quite nice.”
The architects of New Zealand’s victory were Kane Williamson(49 and 52*), Kyle Jamieson (5/31 in the 1st innings), and Tim Southee (4/48 in the 2nd innings). New Zealand was so disciplined with the ball throughout the match that they didn’t let an Indian batsman score a fifty in the entire Test.
Kyle Jamieson Back On The Field Playing T20 For Surrey Within 48 Hours
Kyle Jamieson was back on the plane to London shortly after the brief celebrations for winning the final to join the English county side, Surrey. He says he was back on the field playing Twenty20 as early as within 48 hours of the WTC final.
“It was certainly tough to say goodbye to those guys. Coming off a high of what we just experienced and that moment we all enjoyed together, to go and say goodbye was quite tough. It was a quick turnaround. I think within 48 hours I was back on the park playing T20 for Surrey. It’s kind of the life we live a little bit. But it’s nice to stay on and to experience county cricket for the next few weeks.”
Kyle Jamieson admitted that the time spent away from home hasn’t always been easy, but he was thankful to be able to continue playing and developing as a player in multiple forms of the game.
“Yeah I am a little bit,” he said when asked if he was missing home. “It’s been about three months and will be about just over four months by the time I get out of MIQ. It’s been a long time and I’ve certainly loved my time at home. So it’s been tough at times but I guess it’s been the environment we’re in. Look, I’m pretty fortunate to be able to still have our jobs and to be able to go around the world and work. I’m pretty grateful for that but I’m looking forward to getting home in a few weeks’ time.”
Kyle Jamieson has had a terrific start to his Test career so far. In just 8 Tests, he has picked up 46 wickets at a scary average of just 14.17 with the ball and also boasts of an impressive average of 42.66 with the bat.