Kane Williamson's 5 best moments on the way to 100 Tests

One of New Zealand and world cricket's all-time greats, Kane Williamson finally joined the distinguished club of players to have represented their nation in 100 Tests. He reached the landmark in the second Test of the ongoing series against Australia in Christchurch.

Along with Williamson, Tim Southee also played his 100th Test. The duo thus became the fifth and sixth player to feature in 100 Tests for the Kiwis.

In 99 Tests before the ongoing game, Kane Williamson scored 8765 runs with 32 hundreds. At home, he amassed 4679 runs at an astonishing average of 67.82. His average of 81.86 in New Zealand Test wins is only behind Bradman's 130.08.

With such an illustrious career, Kane Williamson had several moments on this journey, which was full of ups and downs, that defined his character and exemplified his temperament.

Kane Williamson's 5 best moments on the way to 100th Test

#5 Century on debut

Batting in India is an uphill task for batters from outside the sub-continent. One not only needs to be a good player of spin but should also have the technique to play the reverse swing.

The difficulty level goes a notch higher when facing Harbhajan Singh and Pragyan Ojha in India on debut.

Kane Williamson gave a glimpse of his potential in 2010 at Ahmdabad by walking in with his team at 137/4. He scored a magnificent 131 and helped his side draw the match.

#4 Made 2014 a grand year

Kane Williamson's class was never in question. Not even when, after a grand debut, his form took a slight beating and he was inconsistent. But New Zealand were well aware of his potential, and he soon repaid their faith.

In 2014, Williamson scored runs for fun in every format. But Tests were where he was simply unstoppable that year, scoring 1172 runs at an average of 90.08.

#3 Appointed captain of New Zealand

With tons of runs under his belt and leadership potential, Williamson was always meant to lead New Zealand. It was never the question of if, but when. And the opportunity arrived when Brendon McCullum announced his retirement from all formats in 2016.

Williamson was given the captaincy for all formats, and the thing that stood out in his captaincy was his street-smart tactics on the ground.

#2 Won Rest series against England and Pakistan

Williamson helped New Zealand win the Test series against England and Pakistan in 2018 to show he was made to lead the side.

He first became the fourth New Zealand captain to win a Test series against England when the duo of Ish Sodhi and recently retired Neil Wagner ate up 188 deliveries to draw the second Test of the series in Christchurch, helping New Zealand win the series 1-0.

If winning against England was sweet, then winning against Pakistan at their home (the UAE) was even sweeter for the Blackcaps. They thrashed Pakistan 3-0, trapping the hosts in their own spin trap, and showed how, even with limited resources, they can be a threat to any side.

#1 Won the World Test Championship

New Zealand were always accused of faltering at crucial junctures in ICC tournaments despite performing consistently throughout the event. In the inaugural World Test Championship (WTC) final, against hot favorites India, they weren't given any chance.

But Kane Williamson and Co. had other plans. Williamson utilized his resources astutely and took advantage of the conditions that were more favorable for his bowling attack to decimate the famed Indian batting line-up.

Also, when New Zealand found themselves in trouble at 44/2 while chasing 139 runs, Williamson and Ross Taylor anchored the ship and helped them cross the line to lift the coveted WTC mace.