New Zealand duo join White Ferns coaching setup for Australia

New Zealand have added former greats Martin Guptill and Andre Adams to their women's coaching setup for this month's white-ball tour to Australia.

The pair will join interim coach Dean Brownlie in a new-look coaching group for the three-match T20I series that commences in Sydney on October 18, with the trio taking charge following the recent departure of long-time coach Ben Sawyer.

Sawyer had led the side to their maiden ICC Women's T20 World Cup title in Dubai in 2024, but the Australian-born coach departed his position last month following a comprehensive review process of New Zealand Cricket women’s high performance structure.

Brownlie was appointed interim coach for the tour of Australia and Guptill and Adams will join him across the series with regular assistant Craig McMillan still recovering from back surgery.

Guptill played 367 matches for the Black Caps and will step into McMillan's shoes to provide support to the batting and fielding group during the Australia tour and the former hard-hitting opener is looking forward to the opportunity.

“I’m really excited to be joining the White Ferns and looking forward to working with such a talented group of players,” Guptill said.

“The White Ferns have achieved a huge amount in recent years and there’s a lot of exciting talent coming through. 

"If I can help add a few extra tools to the players’ games and support their growth, then that’s something I’ll be really proud of.”

Adams, who has previous coaching experience with the White Ferns in 2017 and 2023, is also eagerly awaiting his return to the international setup.

“It’s great to be back involved with the White Ferns,” Adams said.

"Having worked with the team before I know what a special environment it is and how much pride the players and staff take in representing New Zealand.

“Opportunities like this are exciting because you get to test yourselves against one of the best teams in the world, and we’re looking forward to taking that head on together.”

The White Ferns have already named their 15-player squad for the tour to Australia, with star spinner Eden Carson included to make her long-awaited return from injury.

Squad: Melie Kerr (c), Eden Carson, Flora Devonshire, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Bree Illing, Polly Inglis, Bella James, Jess Kerr, Rosemary Mair, Nensi Patel,  Molly Penfold, Georgia Plimmer, Hannah Rowe, Izzy Sharp

Series schedule:

First T20I: October 18, Sydney
Second T20I: October 20, Sydney
Third T20I: October 22, Sydney