Mitchell Santner - (Source :@Johns/X.com)
On Tuesday, July 22, New Zealand and South Africa locked horns for the final of the ZIM tri-series 2025 at the Harare Sports Club. Proteas, batting first, tumbled for just 134 runs. In reply, the Kiwis got off to a strong start and are on course to win the tri-series.
Irrespective of the result, skipper Mitchell Santner has already scripted a feat as the left-arm spinner pipped past Tim Southee for the second-most matches as captain for New Zealand. Notably, Santner is standing in his 30th match as the Kiwi skipper.
Santner Closes Gap On Kane Williamson
Santner is only behind Kane Williamson in the list as the former Kiwi skipper led his country in 75 matches. Here is the complete list of players with the most matches as New Zealand captain in T20Is.
- Kane Williamson -75
- Mitchell Santner - 30*
- Tim Southee - 29
- Daniel Vettori - 28
- Brendon McCullum - 28
Santner Succeeded Williamson After T20 World Cup Debacle
Notably, the 33-year-old was appointed as full-time skipper in the white-ball format in December 2024. The all-rounder succeeded Kane Williamson, who decided to step down after the T20 World Cup 2024, where the Kiwis crashed out in the group stages and received a lot of flak for their mediocre performance.
Overall, Santner has led New Zealand in 45 matches. He has the 11th most appearance for New Zealand as captain across all formats. Here is the complete list.
- Stephen Flemming - 303
- Kane Williamson - 206
- Daniel Vettori - 142
- Brendon McCullum - 121
- GP Howarth - 90
Talking about the tri-series, at the time of writing, New Zealand have stunned South Africa and won the match by seven wickets. Tim Seifert was the star with the bat as he slammed a fifty, while Santner took two wickets.
