Women's T20 World Cup 2026: Melie Kerr pays heartfelt tribute to 'three of the best ever White Ferns'

New Zealand Women's skipper Melie Kerr paid a heartfelt tribute to Sophie Devine, Suzie Bates, and Lea Tahuhu as the legendary trio called time on their international careers at the end of the 2026 ICC Women's T20 World Cup.

What could have been a fitting farewell for three of the White Ferns' longstanding beacons ended on a sour note as they were beaten by nine wickets by hosts England, bringing their campaign to a close despite coming in as defending champions. The trio was given a guard of honour

by members of the New Zealand and England teams at the close of the game. Kerr lauded the three legends for their careers and the impact they have left behind on the team.

"They're all different characters in their own right, and as three New Zealanders, they're three of New Zealand's best ever White Ferns, which is pretty special. Three very amazing cricketers, three very amazing people for our environment, and they will be missed, but they've left the environment in a better place from when they found it," Kerr said in the post-match press conference.

Devine retires as one of the most prolific all-rounders in the game and one of the sport's most destructive batters. She led the White Ferns to their first major title, lifting the T20 World Cup in 2024. With 130 scalps, she retires as New Zealand's leading wicket-taker in Women's T20Is.

Tahuhu has picked up 225 wickets in international cricket and has been one of the fastest and most threatening bowlers in the women's game. With Devine and Kerr, she also became the third New Zealand bowler to pick up 100 T20I wickets.

Bates, who made her international debut in 2006, retired as the highest run-scorer in Women's T20Is, with 4758 runs. She has also scored 5982 runs in ODIs, the most by a New Zealand batter in the format. Kerr elaborated on her individual relationships with the three legends.

"Sophie, it's hard to go past her leading the side to a T20 World Cup victory, and how she went about that. I think the biggest thing I'll miss is her humour, [she] loves to joke around in the changing room. Lea, I think back to when I first made the side and it was her and Amy [Satterthwaite] - they really took me under their wings and felt like my two mums on tour. That care that they had for me and Lea had for me from since I started, I will always remember that. And also Lea, being the first player to bring a family of her own into our group is pretty special," Kerr said.

"Suzie is one of my best mates in life. So yeah, I'll miss her. And I think with her, it's all the times we've spent together off-field and the love we have for the game and the love we have to compete. Someone who was really like-minded and someone who's really similar to me in how we want to go about things. I'll miss having her around the group. And I know that moving forward, I'm sure I'll keep in touch with all three of them, they're friends for life," she added.

This is Kerr's first major assignment as skipper of the White Ferns, taking over from Devine in February. She lamented the departures of three experienced players from their dressing room, but is excited for the prospect of moulding a young side as captain. 

"I've said it a lot that I love leading the side, and it's such an amazing group of people. Yes, we lose three really experienced players who have helped guide and inspire a lot of cricketers around New Zealand, but I think it's really exciting. Next chapter, you look at the average age of our side, it's probably 23-24 and you've got players who have played a lot of cricket and some new. The likes of Bree Illing and Nensi Patel, to think of how high their ceiling could be and where they could go in the women's game is exciting," Kerr said.

New Zealand Women finished their campaign with just four points from five matches. They were beaten by West Indies Women and Sri Lanka Women in their first two games, but recovered well with wins over Scotland and Ireland. They were handed a lifeline for their semifinal hopes with Ireland beating the West Indies, but were unable to capitalise on the slip-up, being beaten by England.