IND vs NZ: Kyle Jamieson ready for ‘massive strides’ in the near future

The 25-year-old seamer aims to increase his pace and transform into a solid all-rounder.

Kyle Jamieson impressed in his debut in Wellington, contributing with both bat and ball.

New Zealand fast bowler Kyle Jamieson, a specialist batsman in his formative years, wishes to transform into an all-rounder in the future.

In an interview with ICC, Jamieson revealed he played as a batsman before he entered the U-19 national cricket team. Dayle Hadlee, the then coach of the team, asked him to focus on fast bowling.

“I was pretty much a batter all through high school and then made the New Zealand U-19s, and Dayle Hadlee got a hold of me and told me to run in, which kind of shifted me towards becoming more of a bowler,” Jamieson said.

“I always liked batting, it was probably what I grew up admiring the most. Whilst I did bowl, I did not think of that as my career option growing up. Now I’m a bowler who can bat, trying to get to the all-rounder stage, that’s where I ideally want to be,” the 6-ft-8-inch tall fast bowler said.

Jamieson impressed with his bounce and movement of the ball in the first innings of the first Test against India in Wellington, where he picked up four wickets, including those of star batsmen Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara. He also shone through with the bat, scoring 44 off 45 deliveries in New Zealand’s first innings.

'Massive strides'

Jamieson feels he can increase his pace, which is currently in the range of 130-135 kmph. “Yeah, for sure [I’m looking to add pace]. I’m still a long way off [from] where I want to be as a bowler and as a cricketer. The stuff that I started to work on with Auckland, with Heinrich [Malan], I think in the next year or so, I’m going to make massive strides,” he said.

Left-arm seamer Neil Wagner is available to play now after having missed the first Test due to the birth of his first child, and Jamieson’s spot in the playing XI for the second Test isn’t certain. But, if given the chance, Jamieson would love to return to the dressing room where he spent his initial years as a domestic cricketer with Canterbury before making the move to Auckland. “I spent five or six years down there, pretty familiar with the ground. It’s always going to be special, it played such a big part in the start of my journey, it will be nice to be back in that change room,” he signed off.