SOPHIE DEVINE TRAILBLAZER, CAPTAIN & HUMAN

FEBRUARY 13, 2023. New Zealand captain Sophie Devine walked into the press conference room at the Boland Park in Paarl after the hammering they received at the hands of South Africa in the T20 World Cup.

- GOMESH S @Navi Mumbai

Chasing 133, New Zealand were bundled out for 67, and with that, all but getting knocked out of the tournament in their very second game.

A visibly fuming Devine reflected on the performance without any inhibitions. She called it an "embarrassment" and "not good enough for an international cricket side" before eventually breaking down when asked if she was feeling angry.

"It's probably going to come out in tears if I'm honest, now you've set me off," she said before taking the responsibility as the senior batter while throwing her weight behind the younger players. Devine, who was signed by Royal Challengers Bangalore for approximately 1 million NZD in the first Women's Premier League earlier in the day, went on to add how the timing of the auction was not ideal for every team in the World Cup.

Two years on, Devine once again walked into another press conference in a similar situation.

This time, after losing to India and getting knocked out of the 2025 ODI World Cup in Navi Mumbai. The loss meant Devine would finish her much-revered 19-year-long ODI career against England in Visakhapatnam on Sunday. Asked how she continues take ownership time and again for White Ferns and the country, the first words out of Devine were: "I don't know." She said, "I think the really important thing for me is to be authentic, and not just for me or my group, but for you guys as well," before adding how athletes at the end of the day are also human beings.

"This right now is a bloody tough thing for me to have to do.