Former WHITE FERNS captain Sophie Devine has joined the search for New Zealand’s fastest youth bowlers, joining forces with Lockie Ferguson as an ambassador for the NZC Youth Fast Bowling Challenge (YFBC).
Widely regarded as one of the greatest players to ever grace the women’s game, Devine represented New Zealand on 317 occasions across both formats, claiming 241 wickets and finished her career as the WHITE FERNS’ all-time leading T20I wicket-taker (130) and third all-time leading ODI wicket-taker (111).
Devine captained New Zealand 120 times, leading her country to a historic ICC Women’s T20 World Cup title in 2024, and, last year, was appointed as an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM) for services to cricket in the King’s Birthday Honours List.
Primarily known for her swing and accuracy with the ball, Devine was more than capable of cranking up the pace, particularly early in her career where she reached speeds in excess of 120km/h.
Devine said she was excited to help find Aotearoa’s next generation of fast bowlers.
“Fast bowling is an incredibly important part of the game,” she said.
“It provides a real point of difference being able to bowl at speeds that makes the batter uncomfortable, so as a captain, having someone who can bowl really quick is a nice tool to have up your sleeve.
“I’m really excited to be helping NZC find the future of fast bowling talent, particularly in the girls’ space.
“This is a great platform for players to show their skills and the raw pace that they have and that’s really exciting for the future of the game in New Zealand.
The YFBC is a reimagining of the original National Bank Fast Bowling Challenge, held in the mid-2000s, which featured prominent future BLACKCAPS including Trent Boult, Corey Anderson, Jimmy Neesham, and Lockie Ferguson, who is fronting the newly launched competition through his Yorker app.
A key feature of the revamped competition is the introduction of the girls’ competition, aimed at unearthing the next generation of female fast bowlers, inspired by the feats of players like Devine on the world stage.
“We’ve got some really exciting young fast bowlers in our pathway already and I’m hoping we’ll find a few more through this competition over the next month,” said Devine.
“We want to find the girls who love bowling fast and give them the support to take it as far as they can.”
The boy’s competition entries closed on October 31, with the six Finalists now confirmed to compete in the Boys’ Final during the lunch break on Day 3 of the 1st Test between the BLACKCAPS and India at the Cello Basin Reserve on November 21.
Girls’ contestants can sign up for the YFBC at nzc.nz/fastbowling to get their unique entry code and a free six month subscription to the Yorker app, with entries closing on November 30.
The five fastest bowlers along with a sixth ‘Yorker Wildcard’, will receive an NZC prize-pack, four tickets to a home international, and be flown to Wellington to compete in the NZC YFBC Finals.
Finalists will be announced during the first week of November, ahead of the final, scheduled for the innings break of the first ODI between the WHITE FERNS and Bangladesh at the Cello Basin Reserve on December 18.
