Suzie Bates picks 5 key New Zealand players for ICC Women’s ODI World Cup 2025

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New Zealand‘s veteran cricketer, Suzie Bates, is set to appear in her fifth ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup. Having made her debut at the tournament in 2009 as a young cricketer, Bates has witnessed the game’s significant evolution from a largely amateur sport to a fully professional one.

Bates journey includes a period as captain and has seen her participate in various phases of the sport. She notes that each World Cup has felt like a different phase of her career, and she believes this one will be the “most competitive” she has ever played in.  The 38-year-old is one of five players, including teammate Sophie Devine, Australia’s Ellyse Perry, South Africa’s Marizanne Kapp and India’s Harmanpreet Kaur, who will be playing in their fifth consecutive World Cup.

In her interview with ICC Digital, Bates provided a number of information about her career and the upcoming World Cup. She reminisced about the team’s T20 World Cup title win in Dubai and how it’s motivating them for the 50-over tournament.

“We have loved coming back here after almost 12 months. Reminiscing on those last 12 months and that really special time for a lot of this group. There’s a few new faces here now, so we’ve joked about if we win this World Cup, maybe we’ll have to come back to Dubai and celebrate,” Bates said.

Bates also spoke about her long career and how the game has changed since her first World Cup in 2009.

“These events are the pinnacle for me. I feel like each World Cup was a different phase of my career, coming on so naive to the first one in 2009 as an 18 or 19-year-old and not really knowing what to expect at a World Cup, to now the game having evolved so much and every team coming, believing they can win the tournament and putting together really competitive sides,” the veteran New Zealand cricketer added.

Also READ: New Zealand unveil squad for Women’s World Cup 2025, Sophie Devine to lead

While the team’s fortunes will largely rest on the experienced shoulders of Bates and captain Sophie Devine, Bates highlighted several younger and newer players who could make a significant impact at the World Cup. Here are five New Zealand players to keep an eye on:

1. Sophie Devine (Captain): As the captain and a veteran of five World Cups, Devine’s leadership and all-round performance will be crucial for the team.

2. Eden Carson: Bates described Carson as ‘outstanding’ at the 2024 T20 World Cup despite being a young player. Her performance suggests she could be a key player for the White Ferns.

3. Georgia Plimmer: Plimmer had a ‘great tournament’ in the T20 World Cup, where she ‘led from the front with the bat,’ Her form makes her an exciting prospect for the upcoming 50-over tournament.

4. Bree Illing: A left-arm seamer, Illing is a rare and exciting talent for New Zealand. As Bates noted, the team hasn’t had a left-arm seamer since Sian Ruck, making Illing a player who can ‘let the ball fly and swing the ball’ and provide a different dimension to the bowling attack.

5. Flora Devonshire: Described as a ‘very talented all-rounder’ by Bates, Devonshire adds to the team’s depth and provides another exciting prospect to watch out for during the tournament.

Finally, Bates concluded by expressing her excitement for the younger players on the team, who she hopes will embrace their first World Cup experience. “Even though I’ve had five (World Cups), I’m just as excited for their first one and hopefully they just embrace it all and I can share a little bit of knowledge about World Cups with them,”

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This article was first published at WomenCricket.com, a Cricket Times company.