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The Durham star wins the first MVP accolade of the Tier 1 era.
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Durham and New Zealand all-rounder Suzie Bates has won the Vitality Blast Women’s Player of the Year to become the first winner of a PCA MVP award in the Tier 1 era of women’s cricket.
After winning the award by just 0.92 points, Bates will take home prize money worth £2,500 along with a bespoke trophy from Mappin & Webb.
The 37-year-old picked up 194.19 MVP points in the first season of the Women’s Blast after scoring 439 runs at an average of 33.76 and a strike-rate of 121.27 to end as the leading run-scorer. She also picked up four wickets in the tournament with best figures of 2-21.
The first edition of the Women’s Vitality Blast came to an end following an exciting Finals Day at the Kia Oval which saw the Bears beat The Blaze in the semi-finals to set up a final against the home side Surrey.
A hard-fought final ended with Surrey winning by five wickets to become the first champions of the Women’s Vitality Blast.
Over the course of the 2025 Blast, Bates’ all-round prowess saw her secure three Match MVP awards. Her first Match MVP came in Durham’s very first game of the season against the Bears where she earned 38.18 MVP points after scoring 65 runs off 41 balls and taking two wickets.
In the next game, she picked up her second Match MVP, this time against Lancashire Thunder following a score of 49 and yet another two-wicket haul. Her efforts saw her yield 35.43 MVP points despite Durham ending up on the losing side.
The T20 World Cup-winning New Zealander’s final Match MVP of her Blast campaign came against Somerset where she secured 25.90 points following yet another score of 49.
Bates was a consistent run-scorer across the season scoring two half-centuries with her best innings of 77 off 58 balls coming against The Blaze at the Banks Homes Riverside stadium.
The Blaze all-rounder Kathryn Bryce, who won the Charlotte Edwards Cup Player of the Year last season, finished second with 193.27 MVP points, losing out by less than a point. The Scotland captain was the third-highest wicket-taker in the Blast with 17 scalps along with scoring 370 runs at an average of 41.11.
Surrey’s Grace Harris, meanwhile, came home in third place. The Australian all-rounder scored 334 runs at an outstanding strike-rate of 157.54 and took 10 wickets to earn 190.50 points.
The Vitality Blast Women’s Player of the Year was selected by the PCA Most Valuable Player Rankings, powered by OFX, the PCA’s Official FX Partner. The formula takes into account expected performance on every ball according to CricViz’s extensive database. The algorithm also considers the historic performances of the venue each fixture is being played at, therefore giving a more accurate reflection of the top performers in the game than traditional batting and bowling averages do.
Bates’ outstanding campaign in the Blast sees her third in the Overall Women’s MVP standings. Bryce, meanwhile, currently leads the Overall table with 334.96 points with Lancashire’s Emma Lamb in second place after earning 309.72 MVP points in the domestic season so far.
The Metro Bank One Day Cup will resume on Wednesday 30 July as the race for the Overall MVP and the £7,500 prize continues.
View the Women’s Domestic MVP Rankings here.
Save time and money with OFX, the PCA’s Official FX partner, offering members bank-beating rates and an easier way to send money home.
