Cricket World Cup 2023: Kane Williamson's Idol Growing Up Was Sachin Tendulkar, Current Favourite Cricketer Is Virat Kohli

Kane Williamson will be hoping to take his side to the semi-finals of the Cricket World Cup 2023. When he was little, his idol was the great Sachin Tendulkar.

Sachin Tendulkar, Kane Williamson and Virat Kohli. (Image: X/ANI)

Kane Williamson will be hoping for a win when he leads New Zealand in their last league match of the Cricket World Cup 2023 vs Sri Lanka. This is a virtual quarter-final of the tournament for the Black Caps as a win will take them to semi-final while a loss will make their chances suffer a huge blow. Williamson has had a tough time with injuries. The NZ skipper suffered a knee injury in Indian Premier League 2023 (IPL 2023). He recovered in time to take the flight to India but then injured his thumb again when a throw hit him during a match.

Talking about his cricketing career, Williamson is among the greatest modern-day batters. He is grouped in the Fab 4 which includes the likes of Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, Joe Root. 

A toss win for Kane Williamson and he opts to bowl in Bengaluru. Lockie Ferguson returns to the XI from injury for Ish Sodhi. Follow play LIVE in NZ with @skysportnz. LIVE scoring | https://t.co/aNkBrDiAuv #CWC23 pic.twitter.com/GMKvoN9Awi

— BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) November 9, 2023

In an interview to Star Sports, Williamson spoke about his favourite current cricketer and who is idol was while growing up. Williamson said that he idolised India's batting legend Sachin Tendulkar while growing up and is current favourite is none other than Virat Kohli, the Indian batter who also happens to be a great friend of the New Zealand captain.

New Zealand's World cup so far

New Zealand got off to a terrific start in this World Cup. They won four matches on the trot. The Black Caps looked set for a qualification in the semi-finals. But then they met India in the fifth match and there began their poor streak. New Zealand lost the next four matches, which made their path to the semis very hard. Today, they need to beat Sri Lanka to get to 10 points and then hope Pakistan and Afghanistan do not win their respective last matches by a big margin.

Williamson was quite confident at the toss in the match vs Sri Lanka. He said that they are looking to address the issues in their last league match. "We will have a bowl first. Little bit of weather around. Little bit of unknowns. By and large we have won a few and lost a few. Been there and there abouts. Some close ones which could have gone either ways. Here we are here today, would want to address the issue in front of us. Lockie comes in for Ish Sodhi. Adjust to what is in front of us. Make use of the ball first up," said Williamson.