Sophie Devine’s cricket journey from a young girl living in Tawa to becoming one of the popular names in the women’s cricket industry. The New Zealand women’s cricketer, with a 15-year career, has called it quits after playing her final ODI match in the ongoing ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 against England Women.
Today, she is exiting as an inspiration and a winner who has left behind a legacy for the upcoming generations to continue upon.
In honour and tribute to her cricketing journey, the ICC marked the occasion with a heartfelt video that featured her teammates and known people from the industry.
Devine said, “I want to win. I’m desperate to win, and then I always want to give my all. I certainly hope I’m remembered as a competitive player.”
Besides representing New Zealand in cricket, she also led them in the sport of hockey, playing for the Black Sticks Women’s team.
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Sophie Devine’s Debut
Devine made her ODI and T20I debut during the New Zealand tour of Australia in 2006. On October 18, she played her first ODI match. Followed by her ODI debut, on the October 22nd match, both were held at Brisbane.
Sophie Devine’s Career Milestones
In her ODI career, she has appeared in 159 matches in which she has scored 4256 runs with a strike rate of 85.01, including a high score of 145, and taken 111 wickets at an average of 36.27. Her all-rounder brilliance has been influential for New Zealand’s growth over the years.
In the mid-2020 season, she was declared the New Zealand captain, replacing Amy Satterthwaite, who had to quit the position on maternity leave.
In the same season, in 2020, she became the first cricketer to score five consecutive 50-plus scores in T20 Internationals. She continued the brilliance, extending the record to six 50+ scores in the 2020 T20 World Cup while leading New Zealand as the captain.
Her domestic career under the Adelaide Strikers in the WBBL before moving to the Perth Scorchers was a promising one.
In the second T20I against England held in September 2021, she made her career milestone with her 100th T20 International match appearance.
Her final run in the 2025 Women’s World Cup saw her give out another set of brilliant performance with the bat. In the first match against Australia Women, she scored 112 runs off 112 balls. In the next match that followed, she scored 85 runs off 98 balls against South Africa, followed by a decent 63 runs off 85 balls against Bangladesh.
Sophie Devine’s Achievements and Awards
- In the 2017-18 season, she was awarded both ODI and T20 women’s Player of the Year.
- She led the WHITE FERNS to a bronze medal win at the 2022 Commonwealth Games held in Birmingham.
- Selected in the White Ferns at the age of 17, and have batted in every single position.
- In the 18th edition of the ESPNcricinfo Awards, she was named the Women’s captain of the year in 2024.
- In December 2017, she was named the ICC Women’s T20I Team of the Year.
- Devine led New Zealand to their first Women’s World Cup title in 2024 since 2000.
Sophie Devine’s Family Life
Devine is the daughter of Peter and Kathy Devine, who taught her to play different kinds of sports, including cricket, hockey, basketball, soccer, and netball. During her young life, she was coached by her father while her mother used to manage the housework.
She also has three siblings: brother Sam Devine and two sisters, Jen Devine and Kate Devine.
