2023/24 HALLYBURTON JOHNSTONE SHIELD
Round 9
Saturday 17 February 2024
Pukekura Park, New Plymouth
CENTRAL HINDS beat NORTHERN DISTRICTS by 31 runs
Central Hinds : 4 points
Northern Districts : 0 points
Kayley Knight PHOTOSPORT
Selected Milestones
• Hannah Rowe: 100 List A wickets for the Central Hinds
• Kayley Knight: Maiden List A five-wicket bag
• Kayley Knight 7/35: best Northern Districts List A bowling figures (previously Nensi Patel 6/25)
• Kayley Knight 7/35: fifth best bowling figures in NZ Domestic women's List A
Twenty-year-old pace ace Kayley Knight produced a brilliant record performance at Pukekura Park. Yet, thanks to Hinds captain Natalie Dodd, Central snuck back into the match to win the day, even with a player down.
Bowling first after the Hinds had asked ND to field in the penultimate round of 2023/24, Knight's startling maiden haul of 7/35 was the best in List A women's cricket by any ND bowler - and the fifth-best haul in by anyone in the history of the national competition (see the list below).
Knight made sure the Hinds reached only 158 in their innings. The hosts were already one down by the time she came into the attack in the 11th over, with Marama Downes - ND's pace star of the summer - having bowled Georgia Atkinson at 5/1.
Now the Hinds were 43/1 with captain Dodd on the road to what would become an invaluable half century.
Digging it in short and getting good bounce, Knight got her first victim with her third delivery, a fellow young star in Emma McLeod departing caught.
Then Knight struck twice in the over, sending Hannah Rowe on her way for a two-ball duck that left her off stump on the grass.
Thamsyn Newton picked off a couple of boundaries off her next over, ND captain Eimear Richardson cannily deciding to bring back Downes for a quick change that almost immediately brought Newton's wicket in a wicket maiden.
Now the Hinds were suddenly 60/4, Jess Watkin keeping the pressure on with another maiden to follow.
Flora Devonshire and Dodd weathered the storm for a dozen overs together to pull together an important partnership of 59 for the fifth wicket.
It was broken in the second over of Knight's second spell. The left-hander Devonshire went to pull the ball on 31, only to slap a catch straight to Downes in the deep.
Then Knight had her fourth in her next over, the big wicket of Dodd (51) who edged behind at 124/6 in the 31st.
With Knight now on for a maiden bag, the Hinds had two fresh batters in Kate Gaging and Ashtuti Kumar, but Kumar would eventually retire not out with a leg injury - meaning the Hinds would be down a spin bowler when it became their turn in the field.
Knight's third spell began in the 37th over at 139/6, and she got her breakthrough bag with her second ball as Gaging chopped on, Knight sitting on figures of 5/28 after 6.2 overs.
Kumar's injury brought Claudia Green to join Ocean Bartlett but ND kept things tight for the next few overs, amplifying the pressure. Knight had Bartlett caught for her sixth, then ended the over with the wicket of Anna Gaging to have seven for the game, and the Hinds 158/9.
Kumar bravely came back out to bat for an over, but again her knee gave way and that would be it for the Hinds after 43.5 overs.
The odds were all in ND's favour after a fine performance in the field, and yet the second innings brought twists and turns as the Hinds attack rallied together to make up for the absence of Kumar.
This was a dead rubber. Both the teams had gone into the game out of contention for the Final, but no one would have guessed that from the feisty standard of play.
Captain and keeper Natalie Dodd backed up her top score for the Hinds with 51 by snaffling four catches as the Hinds dismissed ND for 127 in 33.4 overs - swing bowler Green finishing the job with 3/44 in just the 34th over.
Her last victim was ironically Knight, not a winner on the day, but unquestionably the star performer after a memorable breakthrough haul.
Best bowling in Hallyburton Johnstone Shield (NZ Domestic List A championship)
- 7/18 - Bella Armstrong - Auckland Hearts, 2019/20 at Melville Park, Auckland
- 7/19 - Munokoa Tunupopo - Auckland Hearts, 1999/00 at Victoria Park, Whanganui
- 7/19 - Karen Musson - Central Hinds, 1987/88 at Melville Park, Auckland
- 7/23 - Sheila Washington - North Shore (team no longer exists), 1981/82 at Melville Park, Auckland
- 7/35 - Kayley Knight - Northern Districts, 2023/24 at Pukekura Park, New Plymouth *
- 7/56 - Mikaela Greig - Central Hinds, 2015/16 at Cornwall Park, Hastings
