New Zealand Cricket is quietly adjusting the maths this season, adding a bonus point to the Women’s Super Smash in the hope it nudges batters – and bowlers – towards the higher tempo now common elsewhere.
The basic ladder remains unchanged: four points for a win, two for a tie or no-result, none for a defeat. The extra twist is an optional bonus point. A side will pick it up if it reaches 150 or more, whether it is setting or chasing, or – for the team batting second – if its run-rate is at least 1.25 times that of the opposition. Only one bonus point is available in any match, so the sums stay tidy.
Why 150? Internal NZC research, comparing Super Smash numbers with other domestic and international T20s, suggests the global par score is climbing. Boundaries come more often, first-innings totals keep creeping up, and what once looked competitive is now middling. Last season in New Zealand only six of 32 first-innings totals topped 150, with 171 the peak. Eight sat between 131 and 140, and 17 – some shortened by weather, admittedly – fell to 130 or below. The board wants its players accustomed to the pace before June’s T20 World Cup.
Head coach Ben Sawyer is on board. “It’s an exciting addition to the competition,” Sawyer said. “It’ll reward both aggressive batting and proactive wicket-taking bowling plans, which are the key skill sets required in this format. We hope that it’ll encourage teams to align their style of play with international standards, which in turn elevates the domestic game and strengthen players’ international readiness.” A little later he added: “We’re expecting high scoring matches next year at the T20 World Cup in June, so this is a great opportunity for our players to get ready for that.”
Sawyer is also realistic. “We’re not suggesting that the revised points structure is the single solution,” he said. “Individual skill, tactical awareness and coaching still plays a major role in improving the general batting standards in the women’s game.” In short, the bonus point is a nudge, not a magic fix.
The personnel news is less upbeat for Auckland. Left-arm spinner Fran Jonas has chosen to sit out the Super Smash while she makes technical tweaks, eyeing a February return in the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield. Liz Green, NZC’s head of women’s high performance, backed the call. “Taking some time away from the pressures of in-match cricket is what’s best for Fran at this point in time. Fran is an integral part of the White Ferns’ plans and she has the full support of NZC and Auckland Cricket. Fran deserves huge credit for the maturity she has shown in making this decision and we know she will benefit from the time away to focus on herself.”
Jonas’s absence trims Auckland’s spin options but, given her age and role in the national set-up, the larger picture matters. A clear head and a steady action beat a rushed return.
Back on the field, Wellington arrive as defending champions. The competition opens on Boxing Day at Seddon Park, Northern Districts hosting Auckland in the curtain-raiser before Wellington meet Canterbury. Weather is usually friendly, the surfaces true, and, if the bonus point has the desired effect, 150 should feel less a target and more a baseline.
For the fans it is simple: more runs, still only 20 overs, one extra line in the table. For the players, an early taste of the World Cup tempo.
