2025/26 Plunket Shield: Round Six Basics
Brett Randell and Thomas O'Connor both took 7 wickets in an innings to help Central Districts and Otago to wins, while Canterbury's win over Wellington puts them at the top of the table.
Brett Randell and Thomas O'Connor both took 7 wickets in an innings to help Central Districts and Otago to wins, while Canterbury's win over Wellington puts them at the top of the table.
The Blackcaps T20I series vs South Africa features a refreshed group after the T20 World Cup and again highlights New Zealand's impressive depth across the various roles.
New Zealand's summer of cricket rolls into autumn with White Ferns hosting South Africa for five T20Is and three ODIs.
Plunket Shield rolls along and along with all the basic information covered after each round, here are five hot pockets of funk as we near the end of the season.
Northern Districts were too slick for Auckland in an away win, while there were draws between Central Districts and Wellington in Napier as well Canterbury and Otago in Christchurch.
Central Districts are Ford Trophy champions and Northern Districts are HBJ Shield champions. Here are three funky pockets for both teams from their one-day campaigns...
The Melie Kerr era for Aotearoa's White Ferns has begun with the announcement of the new captain and a vibrant squad to host Zimbabwe.
Canterbury have already sealed a spot in the Ford Trophy final on Sunday with Central Districts taking on Wellington in the elimination final on Friday.
Wellington will host Northern Districts in the HBJ Shield final on Saturday as they chase the domestic double this summer and ND try to win it for the first time.
Wellington went up to Auckland to snatch a win and Northern Districts defended home turf in Hamilton vs Central Districts, while Otago vs Canterbury was rained off in Invercargill.
Northern Districts held on to the top spot with two wins over Canterbury and two wins for Wellington against Otago put them in second, while mid-table teams Auckland and Central Districts shared a win each in their weekend series.
Tom Latham has back to back centuries and Canterbury are 6-1 at the top of the table, while Central Districts and Wellington had away wins as the next best teams in Ford Trophy.
Canterbury and Central Districts are top of the table after away wins and Northern Districts' made it three wins for the traveling teams with a big win in Otago.
T20 World Cups don't have the same glimmer as other major cricket tournaments as they pop around every couple of years, but the 2026 event is another opportunity for New Zealand to crack a top-four spot and perhaps ... well let's try get out of the group stages first.
Aotearoa's Super Smash continues to serve it's glorious purpose as Wellington Blaze took their dynasty even further and Northern Brave won their third championship in five years.
Auckland and Northern have two teams in Super Smash finals, while Wellington’s wahine are chasing another championship and Canterbury’s blokes play host in Christchurch.
Wellington went south to grab two wins vs Canterbury in Christchurch with the best Blazers joined by youngster Hannah Francis in serving up winning mahi and the Samuel Morgan/Oscar Jackson extravaganza keeps flowing for the Firebirds.
Northern Districts had two wins in Auckland and both Northern teams are tracking nicely ahead of Super Smash finals.
Wellington Firebirds added two more cricketers to the seemingly endless supply of talented youngsters in Aotearoa with Samuel Morgan and Oscar Jackson contributing to their win vs Canterbury.
While there have been many notable checkpoints to suggest that the Blackcaps will be alright after the previous generation started to dip out of the mix, the last few months have escalated a sense of calm about New Zealand cricket.