Cricket: Someone 'definitely' lying - Taylor

Ross Taylor has disputed New Zealand Cricket's version of the events that led to him being replaced as Black Caps skipper.

In an interview with Radio Sport this morning, Taylor, who withdrew from the squad over the controversy involving new skipper Brendon McCullum, said he was told in a meeting four days before leading his team to victory against Sri Lanka in the second test in Galle that he was to be stripped of the captaincy of all three forms of the game.

Also present at the meeting were coach Mike Hesson, assistant Bob Carter and manager Mike Sandle.

Hesson has said Taylor was told he would be relieved of the captaincy of the short versions of the game only. NZC chief executive David White has confirmed Hesson's version of events after ringing the coach, Carter and Sandle.

Taylor said the test captaincy was then offered a week ago in a phone call by Hesson.

He said he was told in the Galle meeting he wasn't up to scratch as a leader and that was confirmed in a one-on-one meeting the next day with Hesson.

"He said I wasn't a good enough leader, that this team needs a strong leader and that I wasn't a strong leader. If I wasn't a strong leader why would he give me the test captaincy?" Taylor said.

"He said 'Ross, I am going to recommend to [NZC director of cricket] John Buchanan that we have a new captain for South Africa'. There was nothing in there about anything to do with a split captaincy."

Asked by interviewer Brendan Telfer whether someone within NZC was lying, Taylor said: "Definitely."

Taylor, who has made himself unavailable for New Zealand's tour of South Africa, said he hoped to make a decision on when he would return after Christmas.

He felt he had made the right decision in not going to South Africa.

"I don't think I could have given 100 per cent. It has been a pretty stressful time for me, especially the last two or three weeks but the last five months have been pretty tough on myself."

Asked if a better approach might have been to "get back on the horse", Taylor said: "It's still pretty fresh in my mind. I think I got straight back on the horse by not turning down the captaincy in Galle and leading the team to that victory ... it would have been easy for a person in my position to just give it up there and then but I decided that the best thing for the team was to carry on.

"The team will be better without me and all the distractions that have happened in the last couple of weeks."

Taylor said he had received texts and calls of support from some of his teammates as well as high-profile cricketers around the world, including controversial England batsman Kevin Pietersen "offering his support and wondering if I needed a chat, because obviously he's been through a couple of things in the last few months".