New Zealand hand Sophie Devine full-time captaincy; Amy Satterthwaite to be her deputy

Meanwhile, Satterthwaite returned to the side after maternity leave and will prove to a vital cog in the team ahead of the 2021 World Cup to be hosted in New Zealand next year.

“It’s a huge honour and privilege to be awarded the White Ferns captaincy,” Devine said in a statement. “I thoroughly enjoyed my time as captain over the past season. It was challenging results-wise at times, but I feel we are moving in the right direction as a team, both with our cricket and our team culture.”

“I’m very much looking forward to working with Amy who has an exceptional cricketing brain and I feel we can form a strong leadership partnership in combination with a well-established leadership group,” she added.

Satterthwaite said being the New Zealand captain was a great privilege. “I’m looking forward to returning to international cricket and doing my best to support Sophie and the team,” she said.

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NZC chief executive David White was delighted to see Satterthwaite returning to the international fold and taking such a vital leadership role alongside Devine. “I want to congratulate Sophie on this appointment. It’s always a great honour to captain your country and especially so in a season in which the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup is being played in your own country,” he said.

“It’s also really encouraging to see Amy coming back into the side and, with other senior players such as Suzie Bates, offering Sophie such strong leadership support.”

Head coach Bob Carter was also impressed by Devine’s performance as a captain last season.

“Sophie is a strong leader, she has her own style and knows what she wants from herself and the team,” Carter said. “It’s a testament to her ability as a leader that her performance with the bat last summer went to a new level. She leads with her actions and the team responds well to her leadership style.”

“Amy is on the comeback to cricket after giving birth and she is progressing really well. Having her experience, knowledge and leadership working alongside Sophie is only going to benefit the team,” he added. Devine will assume the role of full-time captain immediately with New Zealand preparing for split-squad training camps starting in Lincoln next week.