As New Zealand Cricket heads towards a busy summer next year, Stuff-stuff.co.nz shared a recent interview conducted by Brendon Egan with the country’s second-highest ODI run-scorer among women, Amy Satterthwaite who currently has 4298 runs in the format just a few digits behind Suzie Bates who has 4605 runs.
To celebrate the all-rounder’s achievement of a record equal one-day appearances in List A cricket with the retired Sara McGlashan, Egan had a fruitful conversation discussing her cricketing career starting with her List A debut in 2003 representing Canterbury at the age of just 16 years. On recalling her debut, she talked about her excitement for the first match which was made memorable after her first wicket which was of former White Ferns captain Maia Lewis.
Satterthwaite said that getting someone out of the caliber she persisted in was definitely a moment to celebrate. She further added that though starting as a bowler, she has grown a lot in her career and now is more of a batting all-rounder. When asked about her proudest achievement for Canterbury, she pointed out a few of them starting with her debut which is definitely a proud moment for any individual, to playing the 100th ODI for the team, a pretty special one. She also stated that improving as a player and contributing to around thirteen title wins for the team indeed makes it a great one.
On her most memorable innings, she referred to the partnerships she had with Frances Mackay. Further saying, “Potentially one going right back, we took a Canterbury side over to England many years ago and had to fundraise a lot of money to do it. I scored a hundred over there against Sussex. That was the moment in my career that helped kick-start that batting side of things and really grow myself as a player in that department.”
Asked about her views on the advancement of women’s cricket as a whole, she commented that there have been quite a few changes, playing at some of the mainstream stadiums, more attention from both fans and the media, more recognition, better coverage of the matches to name a few. Adding that all of these changes have contributed towards a more supportive environment paving way for a bright future for the sport ahead.
The star player who was inspired by the success of Ricky Ponting, Kumar Sangakkara, Stephen Flaming, and some other big names during her growing years, shares her desire of seeing women cricketers as role models for the youth along with the bunch of men in the years to come.
Further, Egan discussed with her about the national team asking about the depth of the players to which she responded that it goes in waves and at times depends on the province. You play well, dominating for a certain period, and then you have to undergo a rebuilding phase with development contracts and an under-19 team to focus on to bring in some real talents into the side.
When asked about the preparation for the World Cup next year which happens to take place in her country itself, she said that after a tough last summer, we are working on different areas such as building big partnerships, swinging back momentum in the crucial moments, and finding the right tempo for a 50 over match. She further appreciated the bowling unit which has made great progress and the team as a whole continues to do so for the remaining months. On the legacy the cup will leave in the country, Satterthwaite said she hopes the environment and the enthusiasm would be somewhat similar to the 2015 Men’s World Cup held there especially among the youth and look forward to it as a great success.
The interview concluded with Egan asking Satterthwaite about her favorite sports apart from cricket, to which she shared her desire to witness the Olympic games someday considering it to be a pretty phenomenal experience.
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