17 year-old Amelia Kerr reflects on her record setting day at the crease.
Cricketer Amelia Kerr hit the headlines with her record innings of 232 not out against Ireland. The 17-year-old White Fern says women's cricket has come a long way in terms of equal pay.
1 It's been three weeks since your world record innings. Has life returned to normal?
Yeah, it was a bit surreal after it all happened but our tour of the UK carried on and it was back to normal pretty quickly. I did a bit of media but it was all back home so I haven't seen it. I know my family were really proud. My friends were sending me shapchats of me on the news. Most of my friends don't really understand cricket so it's nice when I go home to have that balance of not talking about cricket.
2 Can you remember a moment in that innings when you thought it could be onto something special?
I had to work quite hard at the start. It took me a while to get into a rhythm but after that happened I felt really good. I was in a good partnership with Leigh Kasperek and I definitely had the self-belief that I could score some runs. I didn't know about the world record, I just kept batting. It was just one of those days, I guess.
3 Last year you became one of 15 White Ferns contracted players reportedly paid annual retainers of between $20,000 and $34,000 plus match fees. Is it enough to be a professional cricketer?
Most of our girls are able to add to their income playing in professional leagues overseas. We've got about five players in the English Super League and quite a few in the Aussie Big Bash League. A few have part-time jobs too. It all adds up. We've come a long way; we started with four contracts in 2013, then 10 contracts in 2014. Since 2016 we've have 15 and the pay's doubled. I think it will keep increasing each year.
4 Do you think women cricketers will ever get equal pay to men?
I can't really answer that because it's just so hard to compare the men and the women's games. The men are away a lot more and they hit the ball a bit harder but it's still the same game. The main difference is how it's portrayed. Women are starting to bring in better crowds. There was a sell-out crowd for the World Cup final at Lord's last year which was pretty impressive.
5 Your upcoming five week contract in England's super league will mean you're overseas for a total of three months this year. Can you still pass your final year of school?
Yes it's really important to me to pass so I have options in the future. My teacher and principal are really supportive. I did heaps of school work before I went away, I'll do a few assignments over here and finish the rest when I get home in September. The NCEA system works really well for me because I can get enough credits through internal assessments without needing to do end of year exams.
6 What are your career goals?
I've always wanted to want to be a teacher. I love kids and practically my whole family are teachers – my aunties, uncles and grandparents – all the role models I've looked up to growing up. I'd like to teach Intermediate or College age.
Life's returned to normal for cricketer Amelia Kerr. Photo / Photosport
7 How many hours do you train each week and does that leave any spare time?
About 15 hours. I have about six one-on-one sessions a week; batting, bowling and fielding and six fitness sessions a week; three running, three in the gym. I try to keep weekends free because I think it's important to have balance. I'm quite social. I enjoy hanging out with my family and friends, going for lunch or whatever. I'm just a normal teenager.
8 You've been playing cricket since age 5. Do you prefer playing in girls or boys teams?
I've played boys cricket all my life. They're like my best mates which is cool. Playing tough cricket every weekend has definitely helped grow my skills. I also preferred boys football but I think it's important to have girls' teams as well. It just depends on each individual.
My grandad played for the Black Caps and my parents both played for Wellington. Quite a few of my cousins play cricket too but we don't live and breathe it. Growing up my parents have been really supportive of me playing cricket. They just want me to do what I love and be happy. Dad's been a big mentor and has really helped me with the mental side of the game.
10 What did your father teach you?
That cricket's a very up and down game; a lot can happen so it's not going too high with the good stuff and not getting too low on the bad stuff. I'm naturally quite a calm, level headed sort of person. That probably comes from my dad.
11 Who are your cricketing heroes?
I look up to Sophie Devine with us both coming from Tawa. My favourite Black Cap is probably Kane Williamson. I've had a few sessions bowling leg spin with Ish Sodhi and he's a really nice guy.
12 What's been the most challenging time for you in cricket and how did you get through it?
Coming fifth at the World Cup last year was hard. We really believed we had the team to win it but didn't perform as well as we wanted to. You don't want to dwell on it for too long because it's not the end of the world. You just have to move on - there's more cricket to be played. It was probably really good for us because it made us want to work harder. We didn't want to go through the pain of under-performing again. We have three ODIs against England coming up which I'm really excited about. Hopefully we can get the series.
