Mackay’s compelling case
Second chances don’t always come around in elite sport. It’s been nearly five years since prolific run scorer Frankie Mackay last played for the White Ferns, but the hard-hitting opener and offspinner is adamant she could thrive if given another shot.
Despite posting Don Bradman-esque numbers at domestic level this summer, the Canterbury captain was again overlooked in New Zealand’s one-day squad to face India, beginning in Napier on Thursday.
Mackay, who is the leading run scorer in both the domestic one-day (452 at 90.40, including three centuries) and T20 competitions (356 at 89) must be in contention for a long awaited recall in the White Ferns T20 squad against India, which is named tomorrow.
The 28-year-old will be a vital figure for the Canterbury Magicians in tomorrow’s T20 final against Wellington at Auckland’s Eden Park outer oval (4pm start).
Mackay still bats in her New Zealand helmet for Canterbury with tape covering the silver fern because it’s the only headwear she can squeeze her dreadlocks into.
‘‘I’d love a second crack at it and I’d love the opportunity to say to New Zealand Cricket in the five years out of international cricket lessons have been learned,’’ Mackay says.
‘‘I’ve grown up and I’m in a really good place with life and in a really good place with cricket as well.’’
Mackay is no one season wonder. Over the past four summers since being dropped from the White Ferns in early
2014, she’s scored 934 T20 runs at 54.9 and
1496 one-day runs at 57.5 for Canterbury. The right-hander played 19 ODIs and 27 T20 internationals between 2011-14 and freely admits she didn’t make the most of her opportunities and put too much pressure on herself.
She averaged just 17 with the bat in both forms and only got past 50 once in 34 innings.
In her first few years out of the team, the messages were consistent. Improve your fitness and strength and conditioning, lift your batting strike rate, and take more top order wickets with the ball, not just tailenders.
‘‘Everyone can probably see I don’t own a fast twitch fibre in my body. So it’s trying to do some work around getting a bit faster and a bit more agile.’’
Known as a straight shooter, Mackay concedes she’s sometimes been perceived as a ‘‘difficult customer’’, which has counted against her.
‘‘When I was younger, I wasn’t backwards about coming forward, for sure. I think that probably wasn’t always taken on board well. Now, you’ve got the benefit of hindsight. I probably didn’t approach it in the best way either. Whenever I challenged coaches or leadership or management on the way we were doing things, it was always from a good place.
‘‘It always comes from wanting to be better and wanting to see our national side competing for World Cups and trying to push into finals.’’
Mackay came close to chucking in toplevel cricket over the winter, but realised her love and desire for the sport still remained.
She’s in a great spot physically and mentally and enjoys training and going to the gym again, rather than it being a chore.
With the brilliant Suzie Bates and aggressive Sophie Devine set as New Zealand’s first-choice opening batting duo, Mackay knows she’ll likely have to force her way in through the middle order.
Ensuring she’s got the skills to deal with the middle and late stages of limited overs innings and ability to play spin well has been a focus.
‘‘You’ve just got to keep knocking on the door and knock loud enough and eventually someone will open it up for you.’’
While frustrated not to be given international opportunities, Mackay is excelling off the field.
A self-confessed bookworm, who aims to read 100 books every year, she works part-time as a librarian at Upper Riccarton Library in Christchurch, while fitting in coaching work for Canterbury Cricket.
Late last summer she tried her hand at cricket commentary for Radio Sport in the White Ferns series against the West Indies and proved a natural.
She was snapped up by Sky Sport and has been involved in the men’s and women’s domestic Super Smash T20s, earning rave reviews.
Mackay worked alongside Radio Sport veterans Bryan Waddle and Jeremy Coney during the Boxing Day test at Hagley Oval between the Black Caps and Sri Lanka, which was a thrill.
Her swift rise behind the microphone continued, travelling to Nepal in December to commentate the Everest T20 Premier League, Nepal’s national league.
Never short of an opinion on cricket, Mackay has been a breath of fresh air, even arguing the boundaries should be pushed back in women’s matches.
She’s delighted women’s T20 matches in New Zealand are being held before the men. Gaining greater exposure through television and matches being played at the Frankie Mackay
2018-19 by the numbers: Twenty20: Bat: 356 runs from eight innings at 89 (first in competition). HS: 97
50s: three, SR: 110. Nine wickets at
16.77 (fourth most) BB: 3-25.
One-day: Bat: 452 runs from six innings at 90.40 (first in competition). HS: 140.
100s: three, 50s: one. SR: 74. country’s premier cricket venues have also been positives steps for the women’s game.
‘‘I want to be known as someone who is honest and who’s articulate enough to put their thoughts across in a way that is constructive and doesn’t just come across critical.
‘‘We so often hear sports people, they get almost too media trained, in the fact we end up speaking in cliches. When you hear people give interviews that give different content and some honest content, it can be really refreshing.’’
Mackay was obsessed with cricket from a young age, opening the batting with future Black Cap Corey Anderson at Christchurch’s Cobham Intermediate.
Women’s cricket garnered little media coverage when she was young, so her sports role models were all males.
‘‘It’s probably not very patriotic of me, but growing up I was definitely a big Australian cricket fan. I just loved the way they went about their cricket. They basically won every game they played and just had these world-class players.’’
She’s proud of the progress women’s cricket has made, not just in New Zealand, but globally. Mackay loves that young female cricketers have White Ferns to look up to on TV.
‘‘I think it’s cool 10 year old kids their favourite player might be Suzie Bates or Sophie Devine because they get to see them.
‘‘That must be a really cool feeling for parents and for kids as well to look at it and see your idols and actually genuinely think I can do that one day.’’