Kane is gold for us at number three: NZ's Glenn Phillips backs skipper amid criticism on slow knocks

Brisbane [Australia], November 2 (ANI): New Zealand batter Glenn Phillips has backed his captain Kane Williamson amid criticism of his slow knocks in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup, saying that "he is gold at number three for the team".
Williamson's performance faced criticism after New Zealand lost to England by 20 runs in their T20 WC match at Brisbane on Tuesday. Williamson scored 40 runs off 40 balls. With this, he has taken his tally in the tournament to 71 runs off 76 balls, and not once has he scored at more than a run-a-ball rate.
Williamson's knock on Tuesday faced criticism because of its length and how it hampered a chase as he could not keep up with the climbing run rate and slower bowlers. He could manage only three boundaries.
"Kane is gold at three for us. He understands situations and I know he had a little bit of a tough day. But with his experience, the ability to take a game deep and command the middle overs is crucial. To be able to have myself, [James] Neesham, Daryl [Mitchell], as well as [Mitchell] Santner doing our role at the end, having Kane doing what he is doing at the moment. We know that he is going to come right at some point, he always does and we cannot necessarily judge him by one game. England bowled really well to him and they shut down his areas. Next game he could very easily get 50 off 20 balls as well so we back him fully," ESPNCricinfo quoted Phillips as saying after the match.
Williamson has not been in the best form in the shortest format this year. He has scored 275 runs in 10 matches at an average of 30.55. His strike rate of 112.70 is pretty sub-par for the hard-hitting format and he has managed only one fifty this year.
Meanwhile, Phillips has scored 627 runs in 15 innings across 17 matches this year at an average of 52.25. One century and five fifties have come out of his bat, with the best of 104.
Phillips is also among the best batters in T20 World Cup, having scored 178 runs in 3 matches at an average of 59.33. He has scored a century and fifty in this tournament.
With this win, England has climbed to the second spot in the points table with five points and two wins in four games. They have lost a match and a match was abandoned due to rains. New Zealand are still at the top with five points, with two wins in four matches. Just like England, they also have endured a loss and one of their matches was abandoned.
Defending champions Australia have slipped down to the third position after England's win. Though all three have five points each, a better net run rate has ensured that New Zealand and England are ahead.
Electing to bat first, England posted 179/6 in their 20 overs. An 81-run stand for the first wicket between skipper Jos Buttler (73) and Alex Hales (52) proved to be instrumental in posting a competitive total on the board, even though Kiwis bowled better in death overs and put a halt to England's momentum with some wickets.
Lockie Ferguson was the lead bowler for the Kiwis, taking two wickets. Sodhi, Southee and Santner took a wicket each for the Kiwis.
Chasing 180, Kiwis lost two early wickets for 28 runs, following which Kane Williamson (40) and Phillips (62) had a 91-run stand for the third wicket. But after breaking the stand, England managed to pull back the game slowly. Phillips' wicket in the 18th over shifted the tide completely in England's favour with the New Zealand team required to make 45 runs in the last 15 balls. New Zealand finished at 159/6 and fell short by 20 runs.
Pacers Sam Curran (2/26) and Chris Woakes (2/33) were impressive for England. Ben Stokes and Mark Wood also picked a wicket each.
Buttler's match-winning 73 earned him the 'Man of the Match' award.
Brief Scores: England: 179/6 in 20 overs (Jos Buttler 73, Alex Hales 52, Lockie Ferguson 2/45) vs New Zealand 159/6 (Glenn Phillips 62, Kane Williamson 40; Sam Curran 2-26). (ANI)