Ahead of their debut season in the new Tier One county tournament, Durham Women have signed Suzie Bates, a seasoned all-around player from New Zealand, as their first foreign player.
Suzie Bates, 37, joins the team on a season-long contract that will cover both the Metro Bank One Day Cup and Vitality Blast. He was the team’s joint-top scorer in last year’s T20 World Cup success.
Since making her debut in 2006, she has amassed over 25,000 runs in her career, including 34 hundreds, and is getting close to earning 350 caps for her country. She is the only New Zealand women’s cricket player to reach 10,000 runs across all formats in international competitions alone.
Suzie Bates, who has led her nation for seven years, took over as captain again for their most recent series against Sri Lanka. She has played for the Adelaide Strikers, Birmingham Phoenix, Perth Scorchers, Hampshire, and Kent. In 2022, she led the Oval Invincibles to their second Hundred title.
“I am so excited to join Durham for the inaugural season in the One-Day Cup and Vitality Blast,” Suzie Bates stated.
“I can’t wait to get over to Durham and join a talented squad and add my experience to the group and get stuck into the season.”
Marcus North, the director of cricket at Durham, stated: “We are thrilled to have Suzie here as our first-ever women’s international professional player. We are ecstatic to have a player of Suzie’s ability join Durham, and this is a historic time.
“She will be the ideal addition to our team heading into the 2025 season because of her unmatched domestic and international record and extensive global experience.
“I can’t wait for her to join us in the next few weeks in what is a hugely exciting chapter for Durham Cricket.”
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