As the White Ferns track towards their next pinnacle event, players have their last chance to make their mark on the domestic scene. Merryn Anderson chooses one player from each Super Smash side to star this season.
The apex of New Zealand’s summer of cricket will come in February, when the White Ferns take on the world at the T20 Women’s World Cup.
But before the White Ferns compete on the global stage, they’ll have to face each other, with the highly popular Super Smash kicking off on December 23 in Tauranga.
With the World Cup beginning in South Africa in February, the domestic teams will be without their White Ferns for the end of the season, including the Super Smash grand final. The U19 national team members will also be absent during January, as they contest the inaugural women’s U19 T20 World Cup.
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So the importance of having well-rounded teams who can perform without their big names is going to be key this season, as the 50-over Hallyburton Johnstone Shield (HBJ) pauses to make way for the 20-over competition.
The Wellington Blaze are the defending champions, unbeaten last season and looking strong again. But an Otago Sparks side with few changes are going to be strong challengers.
LockerRoom takes a look at each team, and picks one person to stand up for their side in what may be a disrupted season.
Wellington Blaze
2021/22 finish: 1st
The Blaze didn't lose a match last season, partly in thanks to their wealth of White Ferns, but also through their consistency and skills in the field and with the ball.
They have a largely unchanged team for this season with a stack of talented youngsters, including 19-year-old Natasha Codyre.
Codyre began playing for the Blaze when she was still at Hutt Valley High. She was part of the New Zealand development team who toured India earlier this month, with the right-arm medium pace bowler taking wickets and keeping a low economy rate.
With the likes of Sophie Devine, Melie Kerr and Jess Kerr often dominating the bowling, their expected departure with the White Ferns’ World Cup team leaves room for Codyre to make her mark for the Blaze.
Some of the Blaze's talented youngsters - Georgia Plimmer, Xara Jetly and Natasha Codyre
Also watch out for Xara Jetly - one of the best bowlers last season, who's also an electric fielder and brings a lot of energy and passion to the game.
Contracted players: Nicole Baird, Olivia Boivin, Rebecca Burns, Kate Chandler, Natasha Codyre, Dee Doughty, Antonia Hamilton, Xara Jetly, Leigh Kasperek, Caitlin King, Thamsyn Newton, Maneka Singh
White Ferns contracted players: Sophie Devine, Maddy Green, Jess Kerr, Melie Kerr, Jess McFadyen, Georgia Plimmer
Otago Sparks
21/22 finish: 2nd
Kate Ebrahim’s last match for the White Ferns was in early 2021, and her exclusion from the national side has left many scratching their heads over the past year. The 31-year-old has excelled in the 50-over format lately, scoring 92, 100 not out, 68 and 72 not out in her four most recent matches.
She’s also handy with the ball, a right arm medium pacer and is one of the leaders in the Sparks group - captaining the team to HBJ victory last season.
With the departure of Otago stalwart Katey Martin, Ebrahim’s maturity and experience over 15 years at domestic level is sure to be key for the exuberant Sparks, who will be looking to go one better this season.
Contracted players: Gemma Adams, Emma Black, Caitlin Blakely, Kate Ebrahim, Olivia Gain, Polly Inglis, Bella James, Felicity Leydon-Davis, Molly Loe, Paige Loggernberg, Sophie Oldershaw, Saffron Wilson
White Ferns contracted players: Suzie Bates, Eden Carson, Hayley Jensen
Auckland Hearts
21/22 finish: 3rd
The Hearts had a disrupted batting order last season, never quite settling on their ideal XI. But they have a strong batter in 25-year-old Saachi Shahri.
By day, Shahri is an engineering planning analyst at Air New Zealand, and recently was selected for the New Zealand XI to play Bangladesh in two warm-up games last month.
Shahri scored 34 not out from 34 deliveries in the T20 when New Zealand were struggling, and showed a lot of power with the bat.
If Auckland cement their batting order, they could very well be in to contest the final, with a team nicely balanced with experienced heads and youth.
Contracted players: Bella Armstrong, Anna Browning, Sarah Carnachan, Prue Catton, Amie Hucker, Holly Huddleston, Breearne Illing, Amberley Parr, Josie Penfold, Katie Perkins, Saachi Shahri, Makayla Templeton
White Ferns contracted players: Lauren Down, Izzy Gaze, Fran Jonas, Molly Penfold
Canterbury Magicians
21/22 finish: 4th
While the Magicians have no players currently contracted to the White Ferns, they’re a team not short on international experience.
All-rounder Frankie Mackay has 60 White Ferns caps, fast bowler Lea Tahuhu has 152, and although Amy Satterthwaite (256 caps) is unavailable for contract, Canterbury Cricket have stated she's available to play for the Magicians this season.
Kate Anderson (right) and Frankie Mackay
But a player to watch is 26-year-old Kate Anderson, who makes her way down from the Waikato to Canterbury this year.
Anderson was one of the top runscorers for the Brave last season, and captained the team in the absence of Brooke Halliday at the beginning of their season. The all-rounder also took two wickets in her first appearance in the red and black in the HBJ.
Contracted players: Kate Anderson, Sarah Asmussen, Melissa Banks, Natalie Cox, Abigaile Gerken, Laura Hughes, Frankie Mackay, Kirsty Nation, Jacinta Savage, Isobel Sharp, Gabby Sullivan, Lea Tahuhu
White Ferns contracted players: None
Central Hinds
21/22 finish: 5th
The Hinds have some exciting young talent, with 19-year-olds Ocean Bartlett and Ashtuti Kumar both making an impact in the New Zealand development team.
But a player who still has many years ahead of her is 24-year-old Jess Watkin. Watkin has 15 White Ferns caps, and set a record T20 partnership for the White Ferns with Suzie Bates on her debut.
Their opening partnership against Ireland in 2018 reached 142 not out, and has only been broken by Bates and Sophie Devine since.
Watkin tied with Lea Tahuhu for the most sixes in last season’s Super Smash (nine), and scored 168 runs over nine games with a strike rate of 122. A useful bowler as well, if she gets going with the bat, the Hinds will be able to threaten the top teams.
Contracted players: Georgia Atkinson, Ocean Bartlett, Emily Cunningham, Natalie Dodd, Claudia Green, Mikaela Greig, Melissa Hansen, Ashtuti Kumar, Cate Pedersen, Kerry Tomlinson, Monique Rees, Jess Watkin
White Ferns contracted players: Rosemary Mair, Hannah Rowe
Northern Brave
21/22 finish: 6th
The Brave had a challenging season last year, starting without some of their Auckland-based players in lockdowns and injuries affecting their line-ups.
However, this year sees the return of former White Fern Bernadine Bezuidenhout, while the Brave also have the international experience of Ireland’s Eimear Richardson.
Nensi Patel received her first White Ferns contract this year, but is yet to make her debut - travelling to India with the development team while the Ferns played a home series against Bangladesh.
A strong performer for the Brave over the last few seasons, Patel recently took five wickets for her team in the HBJ, and has consistently been making an impact with the bat as well.
The 20-year-old changed to spin bowling after suffering a knee injury in 2019, and saw the results last season, bagging the most wickets for the HBJ season (18) and having the best figures (6-25 from 8.1 overs).
Contracted players: Carol Agafili, Emma Baker, Sam Barriball, Bernadine Bezuidenhout, Lucy Boucher, Marama Downs, Caitlin Gurrey, Lauren Heaps, Kayley Knight, Shriya Naidu, Eimear Richardson, Holly Topp
White Ferns contracted players: Brooke Halliday, Nensi Patel
*The Super Smash kicks off on December 23, as the Northern Brave take on the Canterbury Magicians at Bay Oval in Tauranga at 3pm, live on Spark Sport and TVNZ Duke.
