Suzie Bates joins Durham as maiden women's overseas professional

Suzie Bates, New Zealand's veteran allrounder, has become Durham Women's first overseas signing, ahead of their maiden season in the new Tier One county competition.

Bates, 37, was New Zealand's joint-top scorer in their T20 World Cup victory last year, and joins the club on a season-long contract that will cover both the Metro Bank One Day Cup and Vitality Blast.

She has scored over 25,000 runs in her career, including 34 centuries, and is closing in on 350 international caps since her debut in 2006. In internationals alone, she has over 10,000 runs across formats - the only New Zealand women's cricketer to achieve the feat.

Having captaining her country for seven years, Bates stepped into the role once more for their recent series against Sri Lanka. In 2022, she led Oval Invincibles to their second Hundred title, and has also represented Perth Scorchers, Birmingham Phoenix and Adelaide Strikers, as well as Hampshire and Kent.

"I am so excited to join Durham for the inaugural season in the One-Day Cup and Vitality Blast," Bates said. "I can't wait to get over to Durham and join a talented squad and add my experience to the group and get stuck into the season."

Durham director of cricket, Marcus North, said: "It is great to welcome Suzie to Durham as our first ever women's overseas professional player. This is an historic moment for Durham, and we are thrilled to welcome a player of Suzie's calibre to the club.

"Her record internationally and domestically is second to none and with a wide range of experience across the globe she will be the perfect fit for our group going into the 2025 season.

"I can't wait for her to join us in the next few weeks in what is a hugely exciting chapter for Durham Cricket."