New Zealand Cricket announced on Wednesday (June 18) that two new players have joined the New Zealand Women’s central contracts list: left-arm seamer Bree Illing and batter Bella James. Hayley Jensen’s retirement and Sophie Devine’s decision to sign a casual playing contract, which was made public yesterday, will be replaced by them.
Illing made her domestic debut in 2022 and is now the top wicket-taker for her team. This season, the 21-year-old has taken 29 wickets in all forms. She made her debut for her country in March of this year, taking six wickets in six games against Sri Lanka in both ODIs and T20Is as a result of her outstanding run.
James also recently made her debut for her country, playing an ODI against the same team in March of this year and a few of ODIs against Australia in December of last year. But unlike Illing, James had to wait a long time to play her first international match after making her local debut at the age of 16.
“Bree had an outstanding series against Sri Lanka,” head coach Ben Sawyer said. “To show up the way she did against a world class batter like Chamari shows she’s ready for international cricket. Bella’s been a consistent performer at the domestic level and had a great debut series against Australia last year.”
List of players centrally contracted for 2025-26 – Suzie Bates, Eden Carson, Lauren Down, Izzy Gaze, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Bree Illing, Polly Inglis, Bella James, Fran Jonas, Jess Kerr, Melie Kerr, Rosemary Mair, Molly Penfold, Georgia Plimmer, Hannah Rowe, Lea Tahuhu
