Hayley Jensen to play for Otago Sparks

Hayley Jensen, New Zealand medium-pacer, will represent Otago Sparks for the first time after moving from Canterbury Magicians. The side will face Hallyburton Johnstone Shield defending champions Central Hinds.

The tournament will see two more players - Bhaghya Herath and Sophie Gray - play for Sparks. Herath and Gray moved from Wellington and Christchurch, respectively. The team saw the departure of Leigh Kasperek to Wellington Blaze in August while Polly Inglis decided to continue play for Notts in England.

Eden Carson, Emma Black and Olivia Gain all will continue to develop their skills after being named in Spark’s domestic contract list for this season. Meanwhile, the team will miss the services of regulars Suzie Bates and Katey Martin for the majority of the tournament as they are competing in the ongoing Women's Big Bash League (WBBL) in Australia.

“It’s been a pretty long pre-season, we started our preparations in June, so we’re really excited to get underway tomorrow,” Nathan King, Sparks head coach. “We’re missing some key players who are unavailable and that’s really exciting because it creates some opportunities for our debutants."

"It also gives some of the girls who have been around for a couple of seasons the chance to really step up and take some leadership amongst the team. The Hinds are a strong side and will be keen to start their defence well so this will be a really good early challenge to see where we’re at as a team.”

Otago Sparks squad: Bella James (c), Emma Black, Caitlin Blakely, Ella Brown, Eden Carson, Georgia Clarke, Olivia Gain, Sophie Gray, Bhagya Herath, Hayley Jensen, Sophie Oldershaw, Bridget Thayer