After a great deal of preparation, the WHITE FERNS are ready to get started on what is going to be a massive spell of cricket.
The team begin the season with a tour against South Africa, and according to coach Haidee Tiffen it’s a great way to start their campaign for the ICC Women’s World Cup.
“It’s a good opportunity for us to play some intense One Day cricket over the course of 4 weeks, really looking forward to the opportunities and the challenges it will provide.”
The Kiwi side are ranked above their South African counterparts, but the team is not underestimating the test the Proteas will provide.
“They are going to be a challenge in their own backyard. They have shown they are a team not to be taken lightly or easily. They have players that have played in overseas leagues such as the Kia Super League and the Big Bash, and done extremely well. They have also had a series against Ireland during the NZ winter, so they have had plenty of opportunity to get together as a group.”
None of the current WHITE FERNS have played in South Africa before, so playing in African conditions will be a new test for the squad.
“This is real history, the last time we went to South Africa was in 2005 was for a world cup. This is a really good opportunity, playing seven One Day Internationals against South Africa. That’s really a world cup, we play seven round-robin games before the play offs.”
“They are going to place a lot of challenges on our group, but we are up for that. We’re really looking forward to playing South Africa in South Africa, it’s going to be a really good series.”
The team start their African tour with a game against a South African emerging players team on the 4th of October. The WHITE FERNS then have seven one day internationals against the Proteas, with the first three carrying extra standing, as both teams will be vying for ICC Women’s Championship points. The championship decides which teams qualify automatically for the ICC Women’s World Cup, and the WHITE FERNS are currently in position to be one of the automatic qualifiers, but the South African side are just one point behind.
The WHITE FERNS will be looking to win their second ICC Women’s World Cup in England and Wales next year, and the packed summer schedule will give the team the great preparation to attempt to achieve their goal.
“We are well and truly into our world cup campaign, whilst we treat it as a series in its own right, we are certainly working towards the world cup next year.”
Haidee Tiffen and her squad play their first match against the Proteas on the 8th of October.
