In a big blow for New Zealand women, veteran all-rounder Suzie Bates has been ruled out of action for the next three months due to a quadriceps injury. Due to the injury, she will be missing New Zealand’s upcoming home series against Zimbabwe in February-March 2026.
It is worth noting that Bates sustained the injury while playing for Otago during the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield, which is New Zealand’s one-day domestic women's tournament.
After sustaining the injury, further scans revealed the severity of the tear in her quadriceps. With such an injury, typically three months are taken for recovery. Interestingly, this is the second injury blow for the side after Eden Carson injured herself for an even longer time, suffering from an elbow injury.
Bates opened up on her injury situation
After the news of Bates’ injury broke out, the veteran all-rounder took centre stage and shared her thoughts on the same. She talked about how gutted she is to be missing the upcoming series and revealed that she is working towards her comeback.
"I'm gutted to be missing out this summer, I was really looking forward to another season with the [Otago] Sparks, especially the Super Smash. I'm determined to get back on the field with the White Ferns in March, so that'll be my focus for now,” Bates said in a NZC statement.
Speaking of Bates’ numbers with New Zealand women, the star player is one of the most experienced players in the squad. With 178 WODIs and 177 WT20Is under her belt, the 38-year-old has scored a heap of runs and has taken many wickets as well. In the 178 WODIs, Bates has amassed 5,936 runs to her name at an average of 38.79 runs. She has also taken 82 wickets in the format.
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