In the round 5 fixtures of the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield, Otago Sparks and Central Hinds will face off at Queen’s Park, Invercargill. The game is scheduled for the 9th of December, 2023, commencing at 3:00 AM Indian Standard Time (IST).
Squads:
Otago Sparks – Emma Black, Caitlin Blakely, Chloe Deerness, Olivia Gain, Polly Inglis, Bella James, Molly Loe, Paige Loggenberg, Felicity Robertson (C), Sophie Oldershaw, PJ Watkins, Saffron Wilson
Central Hinds – Natalie Dodd (C, WK), Aniela Apperley, Georgia Atkinson, Ocean Bartlett, Flora Devonshire, Claudia Green, Mikaela Greig, Melissa Hansen, Ashtuti Kumar, Emma Mcleod, Rosemary Mair, Thamsyn Newton, Kerry Tomlinson
Players to watch out:
Polly Inglis
The 27-year-old keeper-batter has had an excellent start to her ’23/24 Hallyburton Johnstone Shield (HJS) season with successive scores of 48 and 73. It’ll be interesting to see if she can carry forward the same momentum into the round 5 and 6 fixtures and step up for the team with significant scores.
Felicity Robertson
The 29-year-old all-rounder has been in scintillating form in the ongoing HJS with both the bat and ball. Felicity kicked off her campaign with twin scores of 38 and, in her most recent outing, notched up a 60. She has also produced bowling figures of 2/12, 0/30, 2/23, and 1/21. She’ll be counted on to deliver the goods.
Mikaela Greig
The 28-year-old batter has displayed fine form over her last 4 outings, and it’ll be expected of her to capitalize on the form she is in. Mikaela kicked off her ongoing HJS season with an unbeaten 84. She followed up with scores of 39 and 31 before posting another significant score of 79 in her most recent outing.
Claudia Green
The 26-year-old pacer has been a standout for the team in this edition, and her performance is improving as the competition progresses. Green kicked off her campaign with figures of 1/27 and followed up with figures of 2/11 and 2/47. Building on that confidence, Claudia registered a five-wicket haul in her most recent outing.
Pitch:
The Queen’s Park dishes a well-balanced wicket, one that pleases both batters and bowlers. The 22-yard strip offers maximum assistance to pacers, as a result, the average score at the venue ranges in the 180s.
Weather:
Despite the overcast conditions, with cloudy overhead and strong winds, a complete game of cricket can be expected as the chances of rain are minimal. The temperature is forecasted to hover around 13°C with a humidity of 59%.
Fantasy playing XI:
Polly Inglis, Mikaela Greig, Caitlin Blakely, Bella James, Emma Black, Felicity Robertson, Georgia Atkinson, Natalie Dodd, Claudia Green, Rosemary Mair, PJ Watkins
Match details:
Date – December 9, 2023
Time – 3:00 AM IST
Venue – Queen’s Park, Invercargill
Broadcast – The game will be live-streamed on Cricket New Zealand’s YouTube channel.
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