.jpg) Kasperek bowling for New Zealand during the2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Leigh Meghan Kasperek | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1992-02-15)15 February 1992 (age 33) Edinburgh, Scotland | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Right-armoff break | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Role | Bowlingall-rounder | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National sides |
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| ODI debut (cap 133) | 28 June 2015 New Zealand v India | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last ODI | 23 September 2021 New Zealand v England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| T20I debut (cap 46) | 11 July 2015 New Zealand v India | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last T20I | 12 October 2024 New Zealand v Sri Lanka | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| T20I shirt no. | 62 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011/12 | Western Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2013 | Essex | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012/13 | Wellington | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013/14–2018/19 | Otago | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018–2019 | Yorkshire | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019 | Yorkshire Diamonds | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019/20–present | Wellington | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2020 | Velocity | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2022 | Northern Diamonds | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Source:ESPNcricinfo,21 October 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Leigh Meghan Kasperek (born 15 February 1992) is a Scottishcricketer who plays internationally for theNew Zealand national team. She previously played for theScottish national side, but switched to New Zealand in order to play at a higher level.[1]
Born inEdinburgh, Kasperek made her senior national debut at the age of 15, playing for Scotland against English county sides in the2007 County Challenge Cup.[2] Her international debut came later in the year, when she appeared againstIreland and theNetherlands at theEuropean Championship.[3] Early in 2008, Kasperek was selected in Scotland's squad for the2008 World Cup Qualifier in South Africa. She went on to play in four out of a possible five matches, but had little success, scoring only four runs and failing to take a wicket from her ten overs, while conceding 57 runs.[4]
Over the next few years, Kasperek firmly established herself as one of Scotland's leadingall-rounders. One of her first notable performances came againstHampshire in the2009 edition of theCounty Championship, when she took 3/2 from six overs to help bowl the side out for 76.[5] Later in the year, against the Netherlands at the 2009 European Championship, she scored a maiden half-century for Scotland, making 58 from 106 balls (including a 135-run partnership withKari Anderson).[6] During the2010 County Championship season, Kasperek scored 218 runs from her ten matches, behind onlyKathryn White for Scotland.[7] Her best performance was an innings of 68 against Hampshire, which was her only half-century.[8]
For the 2011–12 season, Kasperek signed for theWestern Fury, a team in Australia'sWomen's National Cricket League (WNCL), also playing club cricket forMidland-Guildford.[9][10] For the 2012 County Championship season, she switched from Scotland toEssex, although later in the year she did play one final international tournament, the European Twenty20 Qualifier in Ireland.[2] Having been named Essex's player of the year, later in the year Kasperek signed for theWellington Blaze, which plays in the New ZealandState League.[11]
In 2022, Kasperek signed forNorthern Diamonds as an overseas player for the upcoming season.[12] She played 13 matches for the side that season, across theCharlotte Edwards Cup and theRachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, taking 14 wickets.[13][14]
Kasperek had little success in her first season in New Zealand, with her eight matches yielding only 86 runs and a single wicket. For the 2013–14 season, she switched to theOtago Sparks (based inDunedin), and went on to score two half-centuries. Kasperek impressed more with her bowling, taking 18 wickets to finish as the competition's leading wicket-taker,[15] including figures of 6/8 in one match againstCanterbury.[16] The next season, she returned 15 wickets to be Otago's leading wicket taker and equal-fourth in the competition, but also lifted her batting, scoring 313 runs to place behind onlySuzie Bates for Otago (and tenth in the competition).[17]
After three seasons in the New Zealand domestic competition, Kasperek met theICC qualifications for representing the national team, although that had not been a specific goal of hers when she first moved there.[1] In May 2015, she was unexpectedly named in the squad for the2015 tour of India.[18] Kasperek went on to play in every game on the tour, which comprised fiveOne Day International (ODI) and threeTwenty20 International matches.[19][20] On debut in the first ODI, she took 3/39 from 10 overs.[21] Later in 2015, againstthe touring Sri Lankans, Kasperek took 4/27, her maiden ODI four-wicket haul.[22]
In a Twenty20 International againstAustralia in February 2016, Kasperek took 4/7 from three overs.Amy Satterthwaite is the only New Zealander to take better figures.[23]
In August 2018, she was awarded a central contract byNew Zealand Cricket, following the tours ofIreland andEngland in the previous months.[24][25] In October 2018, she was named in New Zealand's squad for the2018 ICC Women's World Twenty20 tournament in the West Indies.[26][27] She was the leading wicket-taker for New Zealand in the tournament, with eight dismissals in four matches.[28]
In January 2020, she was named in New Zealand's squad for the2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup in Australia.[29]
During the 2nd WODI of theAustralia tour of New Zealand in 2020-21, Kasperek took all bar one of the seven wickets to fall in the Australian innings,[30] finishing with figures of 6/46 from 10 overs,[30] the 17th best innings figures in Women's ODI history.[31] She finished as the leading wicket taker in the ODI leg of the series with 9 wickets, despite playing only two of the three matches.[32]
In September 2024 she was named in the New Zealand squad for the2024 ICC Women's T20 World Cup.[33]
Media related toLeigh Kasperek at Wikimedia Commons
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