New Zealand’s top women cricket stars are back in action tomorrow, Friday 29 January, in round four of New Zealand’s domestic Women’s Twenty20 Competition — followed by the consecutive rounds seven and eight of the Women’s One-Day competition on the weekend.
Sophie Devine, Rachel Priest (Wellington Blaze), Suzie Bates, Morna Nielsen (Otago Sparks), Sara McGlashan (Auckland Hearts) and Amy Satterthwaite (Canterbury Magicians) all played in Australia’s inaugural Women’s Big Bash League across the past month and Wellington Blaze captain Sophie Devine says the experience has only fired her up more to keep raising the bar in women’s domestic cricket.
“Priesty [Rachel Priest] and I have been talking about how we want to bring our experiences back to the rest of the group — the standards in Australia were a whole new world when it came to running between the wickets and fielding, and the intensity was massive. We want to bring those standards back to the game here.”
Rachel Priest in Blaze mode
One of the most fearsome power hitters internationally in the women’s game, Devine has already raised the bar with the bat here at home this season for the Blaze, having blasted the fastest Twenty20 century in New Zealand domestic history — off 44 balls — in early January at the Basin Reserve.
The big-hitting star’s record-shattering maiden T20 ton for the Blaze propelled her previously winless side to a much-needed eight-wicket victory over defending T20 champions the Auckland Hearts — and it was one ball faster than the quickest men’s domestic T20 hundred, thundered off 45 balls by former Central Stag Jamie How.
Devine went back to the WBBL to hit 26 off the last over to earn a win for the Adelaide Strikers, in a stunning unbeaten 47 off just 15 balls.
Then Sara McGlashan — who had put up an impressive 89 off 57 balls for the Hearts in the same game in which Devine got her Blaze ton — produced a match-winning unbeaten 79 off 58 balls in the WBBL to get the Sydney Sixers to an unlikely two-wicket victory over the Hobart Hurricanes on the final ball, and into the WBBL semi-finals.
Sara McGlashan wrote headlines across the Tasman
New Zealand’s six teams head into the resumption of the twin local competitions with the Canterbury Magicians leading the T20s while the Auckland Hearts are in front in the One-Dayers — but the silverware is far from claimed, with “everyone beating everyone” in a topsy turvy season, says Devine.
“We’re all raring to get out there, especially the rest of the squad who have been back here training for nearly a month while some of us have been playing thoughout with the WBBL. It’s been nearly four weeks between rounds, so it’s about making sure we bring ourselves all back together for an important part of the season. We want to make sure we are in the finals.”
The Women’s Twenty20 and One-Day Competitions are also the final opportunities for players nationwide to push for selection for the upcoming Rose Bowl series with archrivals Australia, who begin their tour of New Zealand on 20 February — ahead of the approaching Women’s World Twenty20 in India.
Devine, this season's leading runscorer in both the Women's T20 and One-Day comps so far with 153 and 345 runs repsectively, as well as being the equal top one-day wicketaker (tied with Otago Sparks Leigh Kasperek) with 10 victims, says one of the interesting challenges for all is judging whether a different approach is needed, these days, between batting at the death in a one-dayer as opposed to a T20 game.
“There is a fine line between how you play T20s and how you play one-dayers, but the line is so blurred now that it’s almost become normal for us to expect to chase down 100 to 120 off the last 10 overs — whereas 60 or 70 used to be what you would expect to get.”
Women’s Twenty20 Competition
Friday 29 January 2016
Round four
Central Hinds v Wellington Blaze at Fitzherbert Park, Palmerston North, 3pm
Canterbury Magicians v Otago Sparks at Hagley Oval, Christchurch, 4pm
Northern Spirit v Auckland Hearts at Bruce Pulman Park, Auckland, 4pm
Full schedule
Points table
Women’s One-Day Competition
Saturday 30 January 2016
Round seven
Central Hinds v Wellington Blaze at Fitzherbert Park, Palmerston North, 10.30am
Canterbury Magicians v Otago Sparks at Hagley Oval, Christchurch, 10am
Northern Spirit v Auckland Hearts at Bruce Pulman Park, Auckland, 10.30am
Sunday 31 January 2016
Round eight
Central Hinds v Wellington Blaze at Fitzherbert Park, Palmerston North, 10am
Canterbury Magicians v Otago Sparks at Hagley Oval, Christchurch, 10am
Northern Spirit v Auckland Hearts at Bruce Pulman Park, Auckland, 10am
