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Tom Latham has been appointed the New Zealand Test skipper ahead of the three-match series against India. He succeeds Tim Southee, who resigned from his role after a 2-0 series defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka. Southee led the Kiwis in 14 Tests from December 2022 after replacing Kane Williamson.
Southee believed his relinquishing the captaincy was in the best interest of the team as he felt that his performances were not up to the mark. Meanwhile, captaining New Zealand won't be a new experience for Latham, who has led the side in nine Tests, winning four.
However, it will be a massive task for Latham to reunite the lagging New Zealand team who have been pretty ordinary in the traditional format. Ever since winning the inaugural edition of the World Test Championship (WTC), the Kiwis have been on the decline and have been found wanting, especially in away conditions.
They fought hard in the opening Test against Sri Lanka but were blown away in the second Test. New Zealand were bowled out for just 88 runs in the first innings and there was no way back after they conceded a first-innings lead over 500 runs.
The upcoming series in India will be even tougher than the Sri Lanka tour, which doesn't augur well for the newly appointed captain. While Latham does have the experience of playing on the subcontinent, it will be a tall order for the stylish left-handed batter to get the side in good shape ahead of arguably the most challenging away series for any team in the world.
On that note, let us have a look at three reasons why appointing Latham as the Test captain isn't the right move:
#1 Tom Latham’s performance dips as the captain
One of the most experienced players of the current New Zealand squad, Latham has been handed over the duties of the Test side. But it might not be the right move, given Latham’s value as a player in the team.
While some players tend to bring the best out of them with the added responsibility of captaincy, Latham gets bogged down by it if the stats are anything to go by.
Latham has played 81 Tests so far, leading the country on nine occasions. In 72 Tests as a non-captain, Latham averages an impressive 40.34 and has scored over 5,000 runs. However, his record when playing as a captain dips considerably.
In the nine matches Latham has led New Zealand, his average goes down to 31.07. His second-highest individual score of 252 came during his captaincy stint which suggests that he has underperformed most of his stop-start captaincy career.
#2 Latham has a poor batting record against the heavyweights
Latham's Test record has been a tale of two halves. While he boats tremendous numbers against Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, the West Indies, and Zimbabwe, his career average dips considerably while playing against top-flight teams like India, Australia, South Africa, and England.
It will be a tough Indian tour and a thrashing at the hands of a strong Indian side could hamper Latham’s full-time captaincy career.
#3 New Zealand should have looked towards a fresh face
Latham being one of the most experienced players in the Kiwi squad might have prompted New Zealand Cricket to name him Southee’s replacement. But NZC could have been better off in choosing a relatively new face who could have changed the dynamics of the side.
New Zealand have been pretty ordinary in Tests and appointing someone else could have started a new dawn in their red-ball fortunes. Maybe a Rachin Ravindra or a Daryl Mitchell could have been an option.
Even Kane Williamson, who remains their best batter, was an option. It will be interesting to see how things pan out for the Kiwis under Latham’s leadership.
