Wellington [New Zealand], April 29 (ANI): Off-spinning all-rounder Nensi Patel and batter Izzy Sharp have earned their maiden World Cup call-ups as part of a White Ferns squad selected to defend their title at the 2026 ICC Women's T20 World Cup in England in June.

The 15-strong squad, led by captain Melie Kerr, features ten players from New Zealand's victorious 2024 campaign, including Sophie Devine and Suzie Bates, who will be attending their tenth and final T20 World Cup, according to the official New Zealand Cricket website.

Devine and Lea Tahuhu have confirmed the World Cup will be their last campaign with the White Ferns, bringing the curtain down on their T20 careers after retiring from ODI cricket during the recent season.

Devine and Tahuhu will finish their careers in England alongside long-time teammate Bates, who announced on Friday her retirement from international cricket at the end of the tournament.

Northern Brave's Patel has been a consistent performer on the domestic scene and was rewarded with her T20I debut against Zimbabwe in February, where she claimed three wickets for just eight runs in her second match.

Twenty-one-year-old Izzy Sharp is the youngest player in the squad and will make her senior World Cup debut after captaining New Zealand at the inaugural ICC Under-19 Women's T20 World Cup in 2023.

The hard-hitting right-hander has accrued 11 T20I caps since her WHITE FERNS debut in March 2025 and has become a key batter for the Canterbury Magicians on the domestic scene, most recently topping the team's run-scoring charts in the 2025-26 Super Smash.

Captain Kerr, who snared a T20 World Cup record of 15 wickets in 2024 and was named Player of the Tournament, will be joined in the spin department by all-rounders Bates, left-armer Flora Devonshire, and Patel.

The tournament will be the first in the format for left-arm seamer Bree Illing, wicketkeeper-batter Polly Inglis and Devonshire, who all featured in New Zealand's squad at last year's one-day World Cup.

New Zealand coach Ben Sawyer paid tribute to the careers of Bates, Devine and Tahuhu and believes the trio will be highly motivated to end their international careers on a high.

'To have our three most senior players all finishing their careers at the same tournament is a rare and special occasion,' Sawyer said.

'All three have had distinguished careers in their own right and given so much to this team and the game in general.

'There'll be a time at the end of the tournament to further acknowledge and celebrate the trio, and I know at present they're very focused on performing well in their final mission with the team.'

The White Ferns will feature in Group 2 at the T20 World Cup and will face fixtures against England, Ireland, Scotland, Sri Lanka and the West Indies prior to the knockout stages.

New Zealand squad:

Melie Kerr (c), Suzie Bates, Sophie Devine, Flora Devonshire, Izzy Gaze, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Bree Illing, Polly Inglis, Jess Kerr, Rosemary Mair, Nensi Patel, Georgia Plimmer, Izzy Sharp, Lea Tahuhu. (ANI)