New Zealand's summer of cricket rolls into autumn with White Ferns hosting South Africa for five T20Is and three ODIs. The T20I series is packaged with a men's series and with a T20 World Cup on the horizon, the White Ferns series will offer an important checkpoint as they prepare to defend their championship.

Despite being T20WC champions, White Ferns aren't that good at T20I cricket. Aotearoa won four games in a row during the T20WC and that's one of two phases in which White Ferns have won back to back T20Is since the start of 2024. The other pocket in which White Ferns have won back to back games in this format was the recent series vs Zimbabwe in which they won all three games.

White Ferns are 10-17 in T20Is since the start of 2024 and 4-4 since the start of 2025, both of which include the three wins vs Zim. That's balanced by playing 17 games vs Australia or England in this period and Aotearoa is 1-16 in those games, including a 1-7 record in Aotearoa. White Ferns are 5-8 for T20Is in New Zealand since the start of 2024.

The headlines for this series revolved around the selections of Sophie Devine, Suzie Bates and Lea Tahuhu. All three are legendary White Ferns but this is the Melie Kerr era and she is Aotearoa's best player right now, plus she is already in the mix for New Zealand's greatest cricketer ever (men or women).

A-Kerr is first for White Ferns T20I runs and wickets since the start of 2024. She is also first for runs since the start of 2025 and Jess Kerr is the only bowler with more wickets in this period.

2024 onwards

Most runs

Melie Kerr: 727 runs @ 38.2avg/120sr - only with 600+ runs

Most wickets

Melie Kerr: 35w @ 16.3avg/6.7rpo - only with 20+ wickets

2025 onwards

Most runs

Melie Kerr: 340 run @ 113.3avg/146sr - only with 200+ runs

Most wickets

Jess Kerr: 10w @ 20avg/6.7rpo
Melie Kerr: 6w @ 20.3avg/6.4rpo

A-Kerr is currently fourth for Aotearoa T20I runs and second for wickets at 25-years-old. She is the only New Zealand batter with 100+ T20I runs and a 30+ average, while also being one of three White Ferns with 90+ wickets. The other bowlers with 90+ wickets are Sophie Devine and Lea Tahuhu, with all three averaging 19.

A-Kerr is also one of three batters with strike-rates over 120 since the start of 2024 and one of three batters over 140sr since the start of 2025. This sets up the funkiest zone for White Ferns in T20Is as Devine and Bates don't feature in the highest strike-rates list since the start of 2024 as they are both below 110sr. Meanwhile Izzy Gaze and J-Kerr join the captain in scoring the quickest...

Highest T20I batting strike-rates

2024 onwards (50+ runs)

Izzy Gaze: 132.46
Jess Kerr: 121.97
Melie Kerr: 120.16
Lea Tahuhu: 112.12
Maddy Green: 111.71

2025 onwards (20+ runs)

Maddy Green: 156.14
Izzy Gaze: 152.41
Melie Kerr: 146.55
Izzy Sharp: 125
Georgia Plimmer: 118.34

Gaze has grown into a fabulous T20I batter for White Ferns over the last few years. She is one of four batters who have 100+ T20I runs and averages over 25 (A-Kerr, Bates, Devine) but Gaze has the highest strike-rate of them all (123.4). That strike-rate is second highest for White Ferns with 100+ runs and the highest strike-rate for 200+ runs.

All of which was on display in the Super Smash this season. After four seasons of Super Smash, Gaze scored 100+ runs for the first last time last season and backed it up with her best season this summer...

2024/25: 161 runs @ 17.8avg/117sr
2025/26: 254 runs @ 25.4avg/124sr
Recent scores: 59, 14, 31, 0, 54, 5*, 30*, 66*, 85*, 38*, 59*, 20

Izzy Sharp and Flora Devonshire are crisp scorers as well, giving White Ferns plenty of oomph in their batting line up. Nensi Patel joins A-Kerr and Devonshire as spinning all-rounders, with Bates also forecasted to drop down the order and operate in this zone. That eases the clutter at the top of the order where Bates has been one of the slowest scorers for White Ferns.

While the Devine and Tahuhu are still 1st 11 T20I players for Aotearoa, Bates could be under pressure for her spot in the top-tier T20I group. She has one 50+ score in her last 25 innings and she has been below 120sr in her last five years of T20I batting, with a notable drop in her scoring run since the start of 2025.

Suzie Bates T20I batting

Before 2020: 30.69avg/112.2sr
Since start of 2020: 26.49avg/102.2sr

Last five years

2021: 14.33avg/84.3sr
2022: 26avg/101.4sr
2023: 39.54avg/106sr
2024: 24.5avg/103.5sr
2025: 22avg/115.7sr

White Ferns don't really need more spinners either. Flipping to offies has refreshed Bates but Devonshire and Patel could put pressure on Bates with their spinny all-round mahi. Eden Carson and Fran Jonas aren't involved in this series as an indicator of the spin depth. Bates hasn't bowled 10+ overs in T20Is since 2018 and had 8.1ov with 1w @ 51avg/6.2rpo last year, so it's not like she has demanded selection as a better tweaker than the others.

Bree Illing is only in the squad for the first two games, with Tahuhu coming in for the last three games. Molly Penfold hasn't been selected after the best Super Smash season of her career with Devine, J-Kerr and Rosemary Mair the seamers selected for the whole T20I series. Brooke Halliday adds a bowling option and a strength of White Ferns is their all-rounders that gives them lots of options for 1st 11 combos.

Devine hasn't been flash in T20I bowling recently though...

2023: 15ov, 3w @ 38.3avg/7.6rpo
2024: 20.2ov, 4w @ 47avg/9.2rpo
2025: 8ov, 2w @ 39.5avg/9.8rpo

That's the only phase of Devine's T20I career with back to back years averaging 30+ let alone three in a row. It's also the only phase with back to back years conceding more than 9rpo and this highlights an intriguing perspective for this series as younger players are on the rise, with the potential to shake up future selections for older players if they can pile up runs and wickets.

Devine can fall back on her powerful batting and Tahuhu is still one of the best T20I seamers for Aotearoa. Both have retired from ODIs to spark up a changing of the guard for Aotearoa in that format and along with Bates, these three are lingering to defend their T20WC championship. They deserve that opportunity but White Ferns are now in the Melie Kerr era and this coincides with growing depth, perhaps the best pocket of depth in the last decade or so.

Carson, Jonas, Penfold, Hannah Rowe, Bella James, Kayley Knight and even Emma McLeod if she continues her progression in T20 batting will be eager to work their way into the T20I team as well. Sharp and Devonshire have opportunities to push for 1st 11 roles alongside Plimmer and Gaze, with the spin duo of Devonshire/Patel offering excellent fielding to go with their other skills.

White Ferns aren't automatically favourites for this series and it will be an awesome series against South Africa. That's exactly what White Ferns need right now and while there probably won't be a shake up before the T20WC, this series presents a platform for all players to put their best foot forward at a time of growing depth for White Ferns.

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Peace and love.