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Ross Taylor uncertain about future - 'I still love playing'

June 30, 2021

The 37-year-old hasn't decided if the World Test Championship final will be his last match.

For some, Ross Taylor hitting the winning runs in the World Test Championship would be the perfect swansong for the Black Caps star.

But for the man himself, he's not so sure.

After years of coming up just short on the world stage, Taylor and the Black Caps finally earned their place in the winner's circle last week with their eight-wicket over India in the final at Southampton.

Longtime keeper BJ Watling had confirmed prior to the Test it was always going to be his swansong, no matter the result, but questions remain around 37-year-old Taylor.

He told media today from his room in managed isolation he opted to keep his options open heading into the final for the sake of his game.

"I wanted to go in there and do what I can and just do what was in front of me," Taylor said.

"Whereas if it was my last game and I had put that extra pressure on me, it would have made it even harder mentally to get through that."

With the match out the way though, he still hasn't made the call.

"I'm glad with the decisions I made and whatever happens for a reason - whatever happens over the coming months will be what it is."

Taylor hinted conversations with former teammates and cricketers may have helped him make up his mind though.

"A lot of past players tell me you're a long time retired, and a lot of them told me that they felt like they retired too early," he said.

"I still love playing the game of cricket and still feel like I've got something to give to this game - both on and off the field.

"Regardless of when I do pull up stumps, then I still feel like I can play domestic cricket. I still love playing for my country and I love playing for Central Districts as well."

Along with the physical strain though comes the outside noise.

"New Zealanders, for whatever reason, probably retire at 34, 35. Once I've gotten to 37 I can understand why they do.

"You get asked the question a lot. Your age comes into question a lot more when you're doing things exactly the same as what you were doing two years ago, but you're doing them wrong because of your age - which is a bit hard to swallow."

For the meantime though, Taylor is swapping his black cap for his parenting one, saying he's looking forward to family time after an intense schedule away from home.

"I'm lucky [we're] straight into school holidays, so I've got a couple weeks' grace. [I'll] just spend a bit of time with family and friends, visit the parents, and just probably relax for a little bit.

"It's been a very intense five or six weeks, and then dealing with this quarantine - 10 days, 21 hours and 51 minutes to go. Not too bad."  

Unfortunately, that still may involve early wake ups.

"[I'll] probably be doing school drop-offs and things like that," he grinned.

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