Three new caps in White Ferns squad for World Twenty20
New Zealand Cricket has announced the final White Ferns squad for the ICC World Twenty20 in June. The squad of 14 is:
Aimee Watkins (State Central Hinds) – Captain
Amy Satterthwaite (State Canterbury Magicians) – Vice-captain
Suzie Bates (State Otago Sparks)
Nicola Browne (State Northern Spirit
Saskia Bullen (State Auckland Hearts)
Sophie Devine (State Wellington Blaze)
Lucy Doolan (State Wellington Blaze)
Victoria Lind (State Auckland Hearts)
Katey Martin (State Otago Sparks)
Sara McGlashan (State Central Hinds)
Rachel Priest (State Central Hinds)
Kate Pulford (State Northern Spirit)
Sian Ruck (State Wellington Blaze)
Sarah Tsukigawa (State Otago Sparks)
Three new caps come into the side, Saskia Bullen and Victoria Lind from Auckland, and Wellington’s Sian Ruck. They replace World Cup squad members Haidee Tiffen, who retired earlier this month, Beth McNeill, who is unavailable, and Abby Burrows.
Left-arm orthodox-spinner Bullen will give the team extra bowling options, said White Ferns coach Gary Stead. “Given that we have two off-spinners we feel Saskia will add balance to the side. She’s a very accurate bowler which she showed in State League and Twenty20 performances this year.” Bullen finished the season with an economy rate of 3.14.
Lind is a right-hand batter and wicketkeeper, whose State League record this season included a high score of 91 along with five catches and three stumpings. “Victoria is a hard-hitting top order batter,” said Stead. “She’s had a successful season with the Hearts and we’ll be looking to her to make an impact at the start of the innings.”
Stead expects left-arm pace bowler Ruck to bring a distinctive edge to the White Ferns attack. “We saw only one other left-arm seam bowler at the World Cup in Australia, so Sian will give us a point of difference. She’s a quality bowler and has worked hard to get into the side.”
Stead said he was confident about taking a well structured side to the tournament. “After the World Cup we felt that maybe we had one too many medium-pace bowlers. Bringing in an extra spinner means the balance of the team is better.
“It’s an exciting squad. We’ve got real power hitters like Suzie Bates, Kate Pulford and Nicola Browne. We have a good mix of containing bowlers and alternative options with the ball – and experience-wise there are some really sound heads.”
Stead noted that the recent World Cup would help the team in preparing to face opponents at the Twenty20 event. “I don’t expect many of the other teams’ squads to change enormously – the core squads should be fairly similar. I’ve noticed, for example, that India, like ourselves, have made only a few changes.
“While that’s useful in terms of our scouting, if we can execute our own plans well the make-up of the opposition teams isn’t so significant.”
The White Ferns support team for the tournament includes Stead, assistant coach Bruce Blair, trainer Deanne Parkes, and physio Rachelle Guy. State Wellington Blaze coach Mark Borthwick joins the team as video analyst. Team manager is Catherine Campbell.
The White Ferns squad leaves New Zealand at the end of May, travelling first to Brisbane where they will play three Twenty20 games against Australia.
The team then travels to England on 4 June, and will be based at Taunton where all matches, other than the semi-finals and final, will be played. The White Ferns play warm-up games against England and India on 8 and 9 June. The tournament starts on 11 June, with New Zealand’s first game the following day against Australia.