Bend it like Black.
David Beckham has nothing on Otago Sparks strike bowler Emma Black.
The football star could bend the ball to his will but he never had to start it a metre outside off and still run the risk of slipping down leg.
That is the challenge Black has to contemplate every time she reaches the top of her mark.
She has to calculate how much swing she is getting and where she will need to aim, so when the ball inevitably ducks back in it is still on target.
It is both a blessing and a curse to hoop the ball as much as she can.
It is not always easy to control but Black does pretty well.
She got the radar spot on in the summer of 2021-22. She nabbed 13 wickets at an average of 13.38 to help the Sparks win the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield.
And overall, in 50 list A games for Otago, she has picked up 58 wickets at an average of 28.68.
Everything is going rather well. But Black has designs on playing international cricket and to help her get there she is trying to add some extra pace, even if that means swinging the ball a little less.
"You could probably say I have an unusual action which helps me swing the ball as much as I do," she said.
"But also I’m working on staying more upright through my action and through the crease as well because that will help gain a wee bit more pace.
"Hopefully that will help me move forward with my cricket as well.
"But it is about the pros and cons of working out how I can manage it, because a big change could affect the way I swing the ball."
She has been working closely with head coach Craig Cumming and assistant coach Shawn Hicks on how to achieve the best results.
A little less swing might not be so bad. She had a stint in the UK this winter and played for the North London Cricket club.
"It was a good experience. But my bowling wasn’t as good as my batting which was a shock because the umpires did not give out any lbws.
"The ball swung a lot, which is why I don’t think I got lbws."
Despite not enjoying a lot of success, Black felt it has set her up well for the season ahead.
"It was my first time playing all year around, so that was a wee bit of a change. But I’m still liking cricket at the moment, so that is a positive," she joked.
Black made her list A debut in 2017 when she was still at school. The St Hilda’s Collegiate product took one for 37 from six overs against Northern Districts in Lincoln. The day before she had nabbed two wickets during her T20 debut.
Now in her seventh season, Black is a key member of the side. She has been named in the team which will travel north to play the defending champions Wellington in back-to-back Hallyburton Johnstone Shield games at the Basin Reserve this weekend.
The Sparks are without key batter Kate Ebrahim this season. She was unable to commit to the campaign.
White Fern Suzie Bates is playing in the Big Bash and fellow White Fern Hayley Jensen is making her way back from injury.
But international spinner Eden Carson is available and English left-arm seamer PJ Watkins is poised for her Sparks debut.
Felicity Robertson (nee Leydon-Davis) will captain the side which includes experienced trio Bella James, Caitlin Blakely and Polly Inglis.
Hallyburton Johnstone
Today, tomorrow: 10.30am
Otago Sparks: Olivia Gain, Bella James, Caitlin Blakely, Felicity Leydon-Davis (c), Polly Inglis, Saffron Wilson, PJ Watkins, Paige Loggenberg, Eden Carson, Emma Black, Gemma Adams, Chloe Deerness, Sophie Oldershaw.
