Black Caps hero Matt Henry and White Ferns wonder Melie Kerr bowled over the competition at the 2025 NZ Cricket Awards in Auckland last night, taking out four prizes apiece.
Matt and his wife Holly enjoyed a date night away from their two-year-old daughter Annabelle, but the bowler told Woman’s Day being a father was “awesome”, before raving about Aotearoa’s cricket success this past season.
“For the Black Caps, the three-nil win in India was phenomenal and watching the White Ferns win the World Cup was a real highlight too,” he says.
Meanwhile, the newly retired Tim Southee was still buzzing from watching the “brilliant” Black Caps come second in the Champions Trophy, saying, “For such a small sporting country to reach the final, we really boxed above our weight.”
Ajaz Patel confessed he hopes his four-year-old daughter Hania might be a future White Fern as she already has her own bat and ball. He laughs, “She hasn’t taken to them yet, but there’s no pressure. I started spin-bowling at 20, so she’s got plenty of time!”
He added that the win in India was “surreal” for his whānau. He tells, “We went there with no real expectations, so to be able to pull that off was amazing. It was a cool moment in Mumbai having my wife, my daughter, my mum, my dad and a lot of extended family there. That was a really special moment for me. It was quite touching.”
White Ferns captain Sophie Devine was still on a high from her team’s “incredible” T20 World Cup in Dubai last year, saying, “Our lead-in wasn’t ideal, but to go into the tournament and lift the trophy in the end was incredibly special.”
Of retirement rumours, the 35-year-old veteran player adds, “When you get to a certain age, it’s only natural people start to ask certain questions and it has started to cross my mind a little more these days. But I still love playing for the White Ferns and giving the team my everything. I’m not done yet… unless they want to kick me out!
Of the T20 win, Women’s Domestic Player of the Year winner Eden Carson says, “Going into the World Cup, there was a lot of self-doubt within the team and our supporters, so being able to pull off this one-in-a-million thing was pretty special… Sometimes I open my top drawer and I see the medal, and I’m like, ‘Oh, my God, we won the World Cup!’ I really need to put it somewhere else!”
Also in attendance were Black Caps legend Martin Guptill and his wife, Sky commentator Laura McGoldrick, who were both thrilled to see the White Ferns take out the T20 win. Laura says it was a “career highlight” interviewing the players after the game, while Marty tells us, “I was playing in India in a tournament, but I had the day off, so I could watch it live. It was a great effort by the girls and I very happy for them to be crowned champions.”
Meanwhile, Celebrity Treasure Island favourite Matt Gibb was the night’s host with the most. He described the Black Caps’ win in India as a “whitewash pants-downing”, which “felt like 10,000 Christmases all at once” for Kiwi cricket fans.
Of his own sporting prowess, Matt adds, “I was always a cricket player and I still am one now. Our team is very much a social team. We’re terrible, but we have fun doing it. Having fun with your mates is the whole point of cricket.”
See more pics of the standout stars below
Martin Guptill and Laura McGoldrick.
Lauren Down and Eden Carson.
White Ferns players (from left) Brooke Halliday, Polly Inglis, Hayley Jensen and Hannah Rowe.
Jimmy Neesham and wife Alex.
Nicole and Tom Latham with Brya Fahy and husband Tim Southee.
Holly and Matt Henry.
White Ferns sisters Melie and Jess Kerr.
White Ferns (from left) Eden Carson, Izzy Gaze, Molly Penfold, Fran Jonas and Georgia Plimmer.
White Fern Lea Tahuhu (right) and former cricketer wife Amy Satterthwaite.
White Ferns captain Suzie Bates with Ajaz Patel.
Molly Penfold and Fran Jonas.
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