New Zealand vs India 2020: Ross Taylor expresses contentment with his career ahead of his 100th Test

Veteran right-handed batsman Ross Taylor has expressed contentment towards his career achievements thus far, as he is set to become the fourth Kiwi batsman to have played hundred Test matches in the upcoming Wellington Test against India. The 35-year-old also said that he didn't expect to continue playing in red-ball cricket following an unsatisfactory debut against South Africa.

Taylor, who is the highest-scoring batsman for the Kiwis in red-ball cricket with 7,174 runs with an average of 46.28, made his Test debut back in 2007 against South Africa. Since then, the Wellington-born New Zealander has smashed 19 centuries along with 33 half-centuries to his name as one of the most prolific batsmen of the generation. Taylor depicted his happiness while speaking to the media about his upcoming 100th game at home turf.

I am happy with what I have achieved so far in my career. Wellington holds a special place in my heart. Having the support of my family is special. My wife has raised the three kids on her own. The kids understand what their dad does. They have definitely helped in balancing cricket. In the end, your family is there regardless of how many runs you have scored.

While gaining his maiden Test cap after a decent impression in the ODIs, Taylor didn't have a notable start to his Test career. He could only manage to score 44 runs in the 2-match series then. Taylor shed light on having no expectations that he would continue playing for New Zealand later on.

After my first Test series against South Africa, I did not think I would play ever a match in the longest format, probably lucky with the timing. I hope over time there will be a lot of players who represent their side in 100 matches in all formats.

R oss Taylor is an underrated legend of the game

However, the Kiwi batsman returned to form with his maiden Test ton against England in the next series and established himself as a permanent number 4 in red-ball cricket. "When I played against England and got a 100 in the first Test, that was the first time when I believed that I belong in the longest format. To get those milestones early on made me believe that I was good enough.", Taylor said.

When quizzed about his favourite innings, Taylor mentioned four of his knocks, which included his career-best score of 290 against Australia in the Perth Test of 2015, which ended in a draw. He also picked his valiant knock of 154 at Manchester during his starting days, where he went on to become a pivotal cog of the New Zealand batting line-up.

One of my best hundreds was in Manchester. I scored 158, we ended up losing the match against England. Then there would be knocks of 140 and 170 against Sri Lanka in Colombo. The last would be the 290-run knock against Australia at Perth.

Ross Taylor will be aiming to continue his momentum after claiming the Player of the Series for smashing 194 runs in the three ODIs against India, as the Black Caps face the latter in a 2-Test match rubber starting from February 21.

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