Gary Stead backs Kyle Jamieson’s IPL pull out

New Zealand coach Gary Stead looks forward to seeing what Kyle Jamieson receives as a result of his decision of opting out of the IPL 2022 after his stint with the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL 2021. Jamieson will be seen with the New Zealand team when they clash with England for a three-match series this year.

The Black Caps will be touring England next month for the Test series, and Jamieson, who is a part of the squad, is training in New Zealand. That is not the case with some of his fellow teammates who are playing the IPL in India.

Jamieson was roped in by RCB last year, however, he opted out of the league this year to spend time at home and focus on improving his game. Thus, instead of joining his New Zealand captain Kane Williamson and other teammates like Daryl Mitchel, Trent Boult, Devon Conway, and Tim Southee, he decided to play the Plunket Shield followed by the ODI series against the Netherlands in March-April 2022 to end his season.

“I think it’s a very brave move for someone at Kyle’s age (27) to make, but he’s obviously had some experiences there and worked out what he needs as a cricketer. He wants to play all formats for New Zealand if he can, but test cricket being the pinnacle for him is really important for him. I congratulate him for looking after what he thinks he needs to do to play test cricket, first and foremost,” Stead was quoted by Stuff.co.nz.

Kyle Jamieson is looking fit and strong at the moment: Gary Stead

“I think he’ll be the first to say he just didn’t feel quite right last year and maybe through a workload issue as well. I guess we’re not going to know until we’ve seen him. He’s had a bit of a break. He’s looking fit and strong at the moment, so I’m excited to see what he’ll bring,” Stead added.

Jamieson had a fantastic start to his Test career and he continued to display his wicket-taking skills during the World Test Championship against India, Pakistan and England. He went through a rough patch while playing against India and Bangladesh, but got back his form against Bangladesh.