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Lauren Down back from maternity leave for New Zealand tour of England

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Published in Cricket
Wednesday, 05 June 2024 12:11
Lauren Down is back from maternity leave and will tour England with New Zealand's ODI squad later this month.

Down, who has played 28 ODIs and 13 T20Is, last travelled with the White Ferns as part of their squad for the 2023 T20 World Cup in South Africa before taking a break from cricket to become a first-time mother.

"We're really pleased to have Lauren back," Ben Sawyer, White Ferns head coach, said. "She's been working hard over the past four months to get herself into a position where she feels confident to play, and this tour feels like the right time to bring her back into the fold."

Down is joined by fellow middle-order batter Mikaela Greig as part of a 16-strong touring party named ahead of three ODIs and five T20Is against England starting in Durham on June 26.

Greig's selection follows her international debut in March when she was called up from the New Zealand A squad and featured in the first T20I against England in Dunedin, where she was run out for a duck.

Pace bowler Rosemary Mair has been ruled out of the trip by back pain which excluded her from New Zealand's home ODI series against England in April.
Seamer Lea Tahuhu will remain in New Zealand for the birth of her second child and join the squad for the T20I series starting in Southampton on July 6.
Off-spinner Leigh Kasperek will also link up with the squad for the T20I leg.
Molly Penfold returns as a seam bowling option following strong performances against England A in March, when she finished as the team's second-highest wicket-taker behind Hayley Jensen.

Jensen was not considered for selection as she continues rehabilitation for a calf injury sustained during the New Zealand A series but the rest of the senior squad is unchanged from that which hosted England earlier this year.

Sawyer said recalling Down and Greig was in indication of long-term planning for pinnacle events ahead of the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in October and the 50-over tournament in India next year.

"Every series is an opportunity to test what our best playing XI looks like, and with T20 and one-day World Cups looming it will be good to see where Lauren and Mikaela could fit in," he said. "The players have spent the past six weeks training incredibly hard and we've been ticking all the boxes that we can to get ready."

England won their T20I series in New Zealand 4-1 and won the ODIs 3-1.

"When we faced England at home we didn't get the results we were after but we did see gutsy performances from a range of players, which was really promising," Sawyer added. "Anytime you play a world-class team like England in their own backyard it's going to be a challenge. But with the work that's been put in, we've got ourselves into the best position possible to succeed."

Sawyer will be assisted on the tour by batting coach Dean Brownlie and tour coach Gareth Davies, who is also head coach for Loughborough Women and Worcestershire CCC Women as well as an assistant coach for Birmingham Phoenix Women.

New Zealand squad: Sophie Devine (capt), Suzie Bates, Eden Carson, Lauren Down (ODI), Izzy Gaze, Maddy Green, Mikaela Greig, Brooke Halliday, Fran Jonas, Leigh Kasperek (T20I), Jess Kerr, Melie Kerr, Molly Penfold, Georgia Plimmer, Hannah Rowe, Lea Tahuhu (T20I)

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