Will the White Ferns Perform Against all Odds?

It’s been a hard road for the Whiteferns in the last couple of years, still yet to record their first win in 10 games in a row in T20s and coming off tough series against England and Australia. This has been a hard era for all to stomach, with the Kiwis falling further and further behind, with the lack of comparitive investment into the women’s game. However, on the bright side, there are some quality experienced players who are potential game breakers and some exciting young talent coming through in this squad.

This may or may not be the last T20 World Cup for Captain, Sophie Devine, if not her last, definitely as Captain of this format, as she voluntarily steps down after this World Cup. She will be looking to go out with a bang and impact and has the ability to do so, if she can adapt and play her game to the conditions and front up in the big pressure situations. She is still probably the most powerful female hitter in the game and bowls a heavy ball with a number of tricks up her sleeve. The other key to her success in this tournament will be her ability to stay injury free. Here’s hoping.

Squad

Sophie Devine (Captain), Suzie Bates, Eden Carson, Izzy Gaze, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Fran Jonas, Leigh Kasperek, Jess Kerr, Melie Kerr, Rosemary Mair, Molly Penfold, Georgia Plimmer, Hannah Rowe, Leah Tahuhu

Bottom line with the batting, the big guns need to fire consistently, Bates, M Kerr and Devine, then they need some cameoes from Green, Plimmer, Halliday and Gaze at a useful strikerate and some power hitting from J Kerr, Tahuhu, Rowe and Mair, to even compete.

The bowling is looking promising, especially the spinners, led by the ever crafty Melie Kerr. It wouldn’t hurt to see all four spinners play in the right conditions, against the right opposition, mixed in with others who are already batters, such as Devine and Halliday. The match ups and field sets to specific key opposition batters will be poignant but the execution of their game plans will be crucial in their success as a bowliing unit.

Fielding has always been a strength in the past for the Kiwis and has often kept them in and won them a game or two. The Whiteferns need to be ruthless and aggressive in this area and not hold back, go for everything. They have the ability and agility to be a world class fielding team but will need to show more consistency with clean pick ups and direct hit throws and top quality catching right from the start. Some of the youngsters like Plimmer, Mair and Carson, lead with the ground fielding and throwing but the experience of the three that are continually being called out, Devine, Bates and M Kerr, have shown they have great hands.

I’ve asked Penny Kinsella, ex Whitefern opening batter, on her thoughts of the Whiteferns chances at this tournament, especially the batters:

“The batting success of the Whiteferns is intricately meshed to the form of Melie Kerr and Sophie Devine. Kerr’s gradual return to batting form provides a glimmer of hope that her Captain can experience a similar fit. With Suzie Bates reliably getting the team off to a good start, finding an opening partner who can match her run rate and stick around for the middle overs is crucial. Can Georgia Plimmer finally deliver and progress from the “promising youngster” tag? As yet, the only solution to the team’s disappointing end games, is for two of the top order to be still at the crease.”

Schedule

In the Pool A of death, the Whiteferns will be tested against one of the best in their very first game against India. Followed by World Champions Australia, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, it’s any team’s place for the taking to qualify second for the semi finals behind Australia.

Key Players

We’ve talked a lot about the Big Three needing to perform consistently with the bat, but the spin quartet of M.Kerr, Jonas, Carson and Kasperek could be key to unlocking some much needed success for this nation. This will need to be a consistent team effort led by Devine and M Kerr from the front. They need to be on right from ball one, to be impactful in this tournament.

The Challenge

The challenge is real and no one is really expecting the Whiteferns to get past pool play, so they do have something to prove to themselves and their critiques. The pleasing thing is that anything can happen in a one off game and if the Kiwis can get off to a flying start to the tournament, create some momentum and gain some confidence, they could beat anyone on their day. One of the Big Three would need to be player, batter or bowler of the tournament. No pressure.