Suzie Bates on why now’s the ‘best time to be a female cricketer’

Suzie Bates will be part of the New Zealand team that takes on Bangladesh in Wednesday’s one-day international at McLean Park. Photo NZME

White Ferns batter Suzie Bates has played cricket all over the world this year but returning to Hawke’s Bay is always something she looks forward to.

It’s been a busy 2022 that’s not only contained a 50-over World Cup in New Zealand back in March, but also seen her play cricket in Dubai, England, the West Indies and Australia before returning home in late November.

Bates, 35, will be part of the New Zealand team that takes on Bangladesh in Wednesday’s one-day international at McLean Park.

“I do have very fond memories of Hawke’s Bay. It’s a special place for me because it’s where I trained a lot with [the late] Mike Shrimpton,” says Bates.

“I came up [from the South Island] and stayed and we did a lot of volume out at Cornwall Park. I’ve always looked forward to going to Napier to catch up with a few people, but because of Shrimpo in particular, it’s a special place for me to play,” she says.

Although the White Ferns disappointed at the World Cup, failing to make the semifinals, they bounced back a few months later, beating England to win the bronze medal at the T20 cricket tournament at Birmingham’s Commonwealth Games. With a new head coach in Australian Ben Sawyer and a refreshed, younger squad, it was the start of a period of improved performance and results.

“After the World Cup there was a real transition period for all of us. There were obviously some big decisions made. What it has shown is that New Zealand Cricket are really invested in the future and as part of the current playing group, look, you’re just so excited to see these girls get these opportunities that they haven’t had before,” says Bates.

Although the White Ferns secured a convincing 3-0 T20 series win against Bangladesh earlier this month, continual improvement and consistency are the ongoing keys for them.

“It’s difficult to assess exactly how we’re going, but as a group we’re just trying to focus on moving our game forward. I think if we all fire at the same time it’s going to be exciting. It’s just making sure throughout these one-dayers as well that we keep to our standards,” says Bates.

“For this group in the last few years, it’s been about our consistency. Although our batting didn’t go great in the West Indies [one-day internationals], we were consistently able to win matches. It’s more around us actually dominating and players scoring big hundreds and getting different people scoring hundreds at different times and bowling Bangladesh out and if we’re doing that, we’re going to be playing good cricket,” she says.

After the ODI series finishes in Hamilton on Sunday, the squad will head back to domestic cricket before the White Ferns squad is finalised for the Women’s T20 World Cup in February, which is being held in South Africa.

“It’s the best time to be a female cricketer in New Zealand. It’s a really exciting time.”