It takes more than a good knock

Otago captain Felicity Robertson swings at the ball on her way to a century during a Hallyburton...
Otago captain Felicity Robertson swings at the ball on her way to a century during a Hallyburton Johnstone Shield game against Central Districts in Dunedin last weekend. PHOTO: PETER MCINTOSH
Felicity Robertson can be hard on herself.

She is also having tons of fun.

The 30-year-old former White Fern posted her third list-A century in the last round of the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield and offered up a rather harsh assessment.

"To be honest, I felt like I had batted pretty average," she said.

"But it was just about obviously being out there for a long period of time. And, yeah, putting a good score on the board."

The Otago Sparks captain was more focused on her partnership with Polly Inglis — the pair put on 187 — and on reaching smaller milestones.

"We kind of look at a game from a run perspective and we break it down into those 10-over blocks."

While Robertson was not entirely satisfied with her knock — she was quick to remind the Otago Daily Times she got out for a golden duck in the return game — she got in some miles ahead of the final against Auckland in Dunedin tomorrow.

She has stepped up to open the batting in the absence of Suzie Bates.

That was a decision she made with stand-in coach Shawn Hicks.

It seemed like the least disruptive option.

"It’s good in the sense that you know exactly when you’re in.

"You know pretty much what conditions you’re going to get, early doors.

"I definitely enjoy it."

Robertson has a lot on her plate. She captains the one-day side and pops up at the bowling crease when conditions suit.

The captaincy has been a dream, though.

She has plenty of experienced players around her to bounce ideas off. And the Sparks have been in hot form.

The defending champions have won nine of their 10 round-robin games. The only loss was against Auckland, when Bates got injured and they were a batter down.

Even then, they mounted a decent chase. Robertson anchored the innings with 80 and Eden Carson surprised with a rapid half-century.

But newly promoted White Fern Bree Illing ran through the lower order to help clinch a 24-run win.

It is the only crack in an otherwise flawless campaign.

"We’ve obviously had an unbelievable run.

"So hopefully we can carry those performances into the final and just play the way that we do and finish on the right side of it."

The Sparks performed strongly in the Super Smash as well, but were underwhelming with the bat in the final and lost to Wellington by eight runs.

"It is a completely different format of cricket. And I think our team aligns well with the 50-over game and being a bit more patient and being out there for periods of time with the bat.

"But also just stringing those dot balls together from a bowling perspective. So, yeah, I think we’ve moved on from the T20 final."

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