Sophie Devine, the newly appointed captain of New Zealand women’s cricket team sees potential in women’s Indian Premier League.
She thinks that it would be able to next women’s game to next level if organized in full flow in near future. In an interaction with ANI, Devine explained, “I think it would be fantastic to see a fully-fledged women’s IPL and could certainly take the women’s game to the next level globally. We have already seen the success of domestic leagues such as the WBBL and KSL to the standard of play as well as offering international players opportunities to play overseas.”
She then spoke about Mithali Raj, the legend from Indian cricket team who has so far represented India in 209 ODIs, 89 T20Is, and 10 Tests. Devine called Mithali a stalwart of the game and said, “Her composure at the crease is something that I’ve always admired.”
Earlier this month, Devine was appointed as the permanent skipper of the White Ferns side. “Like any team, we want to see continual improvement in all facets of the game. There are some big global events coming up starting with the ICC 50 over World Cup in NZ which is a huge focus for us currently.”
She added, “New Zealand has a great history of women’s sport, especially with the White Ferns winning the 2000 Women’s Cricket World Cup so will be looking to tap into some of that knowledge and experience.”
New Zealand is scheduled to host the ICC Women’s 50-over World Cup next year, but with the pandemic the future of the same in uncertain at this point. But New Zealand is one of the few countries which had managed to flatten the curve.
Speaking about the situation Devine told, “My fingers are crossed that this event (World Cup) goes ahead but we need to also understand that it is an extremely tough situation that is affecting the whole world at the moment. I have full trust in the governing bodies and health experts that whatever decision is made will be the right one.”