Suzie Bates Announces Retirement from International Cricket After 20-Year Career, Set to Conclude at Women’s T20 World Cup

New Zealand all-rounder Suzie Bates will retire from international cricket following the completion of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, ending a career spanning over two decades.

The announcement was confirmed by New Zealand Cricket, with Bates stating she will conclude her international journey after the tournament, which is set to begin in England and Wales on June 12, 2026.

Bates, who made her ODI debut against India in Lincoln in March 2006, will depart the game having represented New Zealand in 362 international matches across all formats.

Throughout her career, the 38-year-old all-rounder has amassed 5,936 runs in ODI cricket and 4,716 runs in T20Is, while also taking 82 wickets in ODIs and 60 in T20Is.

She holds the record as New Zealand’s highest run-scorer across all international formats and is the country’s leading ODI centurion with 13 hundreds in 50-over cricket.

Bates has also scored a total of 14 international centuries across formats and was the first female cricketer to play in 350 international matches and accumulate 25,000 career runs when combining international and domestic cricket.

Her leadership tenure saw her captain the White Ferns for seven years from July 2011, during which she was named ICC Women’s ODI Cricketer of the Year in 2013 and won the award in both white-ball formats in 2016.

Among her international honours, Bates was part of the New Zealand squad that won the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in 2024 held in the UAE, and she has previously helped the team reach the final in 2009 and 2010.

She also earned a Commonwealth Games medal in 2022, contributing to New Zealand’s campaign in Birmingham.

Reflecting on her career, Bates said, “When I look back on the past twenty-plus years, I can’t quite believe how quickly the time has gone,” adding that she remains “immensely proud to have worn the fern so many times.”

She expressed her desire to finish her international career on a high note, stating, “I have one final mission: to head to the UK – a place that holds so many special memories for me – and win another World Cup.”

Bates’ retirement will mark the end of an era for New Zealand women’s cricket, as she departs as one of the most decorated and consistent performers in the nation’s history.