Update from Team USANA Athlete, Katie Perkins

  Team USANA Athlete and White Ferns team member, Katie Perkens updates us on her busy season so far…

Since my last update the 2014/15 cricket season has wrapped up, but I am now just two weeks away from heading off to India with the White Ferns for our winter tour.

My domestic season ended on a high as we won the National Domestic One Day title in a thrilling match against Canterbury. We managed to chase down the imposing 262 runs required for victory with 4 balls remaining and six wickets in hand.

It was a special feeling to be able to contribute to the victory by being out there in the middle as Anna Peterson and I combined for a match winning partnership. I ended up on 44 not out and had the best seat in the house I was watched my team mate at the other end play the innings of her life.

Soon after the Domestic season wrapped up it was onto the International home series against England.

We started off with a ten day camp in Tauranga to lead us into our first One Day International of the series.

We played extremely good cricket and won game one. This was a huge achievement for our side as there were a number of girls, including myself, who had never beaten an England team.

The next game went England’s way, but in the third match our top order played exceptionally well to chase down the total England had set and give us a 2-1 victory in the three match International Women’s Championship and give us valuable qualification points towards 2017 World Cup.

After the three matches in Tauranga we headed to Whangarei where we played two T20 Internationals. The honours were shared with England winning game one and us coming back to take game two.

Next and final stop was Christchurch where the deciding T20 match was played followed by two more One Day Internationals.

Unfortunately the win, lose, win, lose trend continued and we lost the T20 and last One Day International which gave England overall series victories of 3-2 and 2-1.

At times during the series we played the best cricket I have ever been involved with in a New Zealand side, but our inability to do that consistently for long enough periods was what cost us in the end against a fully professional England side.

My batting performances throughout the series followed much the same pattern as our team performances. I started well in Tauranga but then started finding all sorts of ways to get out. It was incredibly frustrating, especially as I was feeling in good form and full of confidence on the back of the Domestic final victory.

It was nice to be able to score a personal best 70 not out in the final match of the series, but then not being able to take out the victory was incredibly disappointing.

Due to issues around coaches being unavailable for the tour to India that was meant to kick off less than two weeks after the close of the England series, the tour was postponed and is now set for June/July.

We fly out on the 18^th of June to Bangalore where we will spend the entire month away. Due to this time of year being India’s monsoon season the organisers have been limited in terms of where we can play.

Training has been going well and it was good to have a White Ferns camp near the end of May that enabled us to get focused as a team and also get to know our new head coach, Haidee Tiffen.

I also enjoyed a few days break in early May with fellow USANA team mate and White Ferns captain Suzie Bates where we explored some of the sights of Central Otago. Our adventurous spirits got the better of us one day in Queenstown when a walk to the top of the Gondola turned into walking/hiking to the summit of the Ben Lomond track! We had not prepared ourselves as well as we should have, but thankfully I’d had a Nutrimeal before leaving and that definitely helped me get through our five hour unplanned adventure.

TRAININGS

Skills trainings are usually done with my Auckland based White Ferns team mates and then I take responsibility for completing the strength and conditioning programme given to me by NZ Cricket.

MATCHES

White Ferns tour India – 18 June – 17 July 2015 

White Ferns v TBC Friday, 26 June 2015 –M Chinnaswamy Stadium, BengaluruWomens One-Day Match – White Ferns tour of India

White Ferns v India Women Sunday, 28 June 2015 –M Chinnaswamy Stadium, BengaluruWomens One-Day Match – White Ferns tour of India

White Ferns v India Women Wednesday, 1 July 2015 –M Chinnaswamy Stadium, BengaluruWomens One-Day Match – White Ferns tour of India

White Ferns v India Women Friday, 3 July 2015 –M Chinnaswamy Stadium, BengaluruWomens One-Day Match – White Ferns tour of India

White Ferns v India Women Monday, 6 July 2015 –M Chinnaswamy Stadium, BengaluruWomens One-Day Match – White Ferns tour of India

White Ferns v India Women Wednesday, 8 July 2015 –M Chinnaswamy Stadium, BengaluruWomens One-Day Match – White Ferns tour of India

White Ferns v India Women Saturday, 11 July 2015–M Chinnaswamy Stadium, BengaluruWomens Twenty-20 Match – White Ferns tour of India

White Ferns v India Women Monday, 13 July 2015 –M Chinnaswamy Stadium, BengaluruWomens Twenty-20 Match – White Ferns tour of India

White Ferns v India Women Wednesday, 15 July 2015 –M Chinnaswamy Stadium, BengaluruWomens Twenty-20 Match – White Ferns tour of India