Otago Sparks

The Otago Sparks is the women's representative cricket team for the New Zealand region of Otago and the surrounding area. They play their home games at University Oval, Dunedin. They compete in the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield one-day competition and the Super Smash Twenty20 competition.
History.
Otago made their first appearance in the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield in 1939–40, where they lost to Wellington. The following period was dominated by Auckland and Wellington, however, and Otago did not record a second-place finish until 1957–58. They finished second again in 1960–61 before finally winning their first title in 1962–63, winning two matches and drawing one. 
Otago did not play in major competition between 1983–84 and 1997–98. Some Otago players instead played for Southern Districts, which competed between 1983–84 and 1987–88. They returned for the 1998–99 season, but finished bottom of the one-day competition points table. 
Otago won their second one-day competition in 2013–14, finishing second in the group stage before beating Auckland in the final, helped by 99 from captain Suzie Bates and winning by 3 wickets off the penultimate delivery. Otago have also competed in the Twenty20 Super Smash since its inception in 2007–08, finishing second in 2014–15 before winning the title in 2016–17. They finished second in the group stage in 2016–17, but beat group winners Canterbury in the final, with Suzie Bates scoring 74 and Kate Heffernan taking 4/21. Otago bowler Leigh Kasperek was the leading wicket-taker in the tournament, with 8 wickets.
Grounds.
Otago played their first home Hallyburton Johnstone Shield match at University Oval, Dunedin, and the ground has remained the side's primary home ground throughout their history. They also used Logan Park and Carisbrook, also in Dunedin, until the early 2000s.
From 2005, the side began using Molyneux Park, Alexandra and in 2007 Queens Park, Invercargill. In the 2017–18 season, they also began using Whitestone Contracting Stadium, Oamaru. All of these grounds were used in the 2020–21 season, along with University Oval. 
Players.
Current squad.
Based on squad for the 2020/21 season. Players in bold have international caps.
Notable players.
Players who have played for Otago and played internationally are listed below, in order of first international appearance (given in brackets):