White Ferns v Sri Lanka: Amelia Kerr to miss ODI and T20 series, will continue playing for Mumbai Indians in Women’s Premier League

Amelia Kerr. Photo / Photosport

As a sign of cricket’s widening split between club and country, White Ferns all-rounder Amelia Kerr will miss the upcoming Sri Lankan tour of New Zealand to play in India’s Women’s Premier League.

Kerr, 24, is currently in her second season with the Mumbai Indians in the WPL, after being signed in the league’s inaugural auction for NZ $192,000 in 2023.

But with the dates of the WPL clashing with Sri Lanka’s tour of three ODIs and three T20s, Kerr is unavailable for the White Ferns and will be allowed to fulfil her commitments to Mumbai.

Kerr’s absence is considerable for the White Ferns after she was named the ICC’s women’s cricketer and T20 player of the year for her 2024 achievements, which also included being player of the tournament for New Zealand’s World Cup win in the shortest format.

New Zealand losing players to India’s T20 league is nothing new. Recent years have seen the Black Caps forced to conclude New Zealand’s home summer without their best and brightest, who head to India to take up lucrative contracts with various franchises.

Elsewhere, Suzie Bates has been named captain on an interim basis, with no permanent skipper named since Sophie Devine stood down after last year’s World Cup victory in the UAE. Kerr is widely tipped to be named as New Zealand captain.

Bates is no stranger to leading New Zealand, having captained the White Ferns in 76 ODIs and 66 T20 Internationals before standing down from the leadership in 2018.

Devine, 35, will also play no part in Sri Lanka’s tour and has been afforded a wellbeing break by New Zealand Cricket, and has also opted out of her WPL commitments for Royal Challengers Bangalore.

World Cup-winner Georgia Plimmer will make her first international appearance of the New Zealand summer, after suffering a hip injury.

In the bowling ranks, the White Ferns will be without Lea Tahuhu and Molly Penfold for the entirety of the tour, while Rosemary Mair will miss the ODI series.

Their absences are filled by the return of Hayley Jensen for the first time since 2023, as Auckland seamer Bree Illing is awarded her first international call-up.

Central Districts all-rounder Emma McLeod and Canterbury Magicians batter Izzy Sharp are also first-time inclusions, after performances at the domestic and under-19 levels.

White Ferns squad: Suzie Bates (captain), Eden Carson, Izzy Gaze, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Bree Illing, Polly Inglis, Bella James, Hayley Jensen, Fran Jonas, Jess Kerr, Rosemary Mair, Emma McLeod, Georgia Plimmer, Hannah Rowe, Izzy Sharp

Alex Powell is an Online Sports Editor for the NZ Herald. He has been a sports journalist since 2016, and previously worked for both Newshub and 1News.