.png)
Player Profile
Team: Wellington
T20 Wickets: 33
LA Wickets: 43
Wellington’s Xara Jetly is slowly becoming a rising star in the cricketing and social media world. The 22-year-old has played 40 List A games for Wellington and 37 T20s.
Jetly tells Kiwi Cricket Kōrero that she has always “wanted to become a sportswoman of some kind. It was going to be netball, then basketball, swimming, badminton, or football.” Eventually, she decided between football and cricket, with her choice being cricket. She says that she “still doesn’t know why I did till this day.” Jetly thinks that she did have a lot of support in the cricket community and that she backed her skills more in cricket than football.
On the matter of becoming a spinner, she always knew that it was going to happen because, in her words, “I am just so bloody short!!!” She credits Ivan Tissera as the coach who helped her start her journey and something that she is so thankful for. Jetly also credits Christie Van Dyke who introduced her to the Wellington set-up and then Lance Dry and Luke Woodcock who are “incredible masters of the game and help me find the style of cricketer I want to be.”
Jetly has been vital to Wellington’s success over the years with her handy right-arm off-breaks. She keeps the run rate down and goes for under six runs an over in both formats. In the T20 format, she has personal best bowling figures of 4/1 which she took against the Northern Brave two seasons ago. Jetly highlights that day as such a “surreal” and “awesome feeling”, and that she “still hasn’t processed the feeling.” She also states that she is “proud of myself, to have done that so early in her career.”
Throughout her career, Jetly has been a part of Wellington sides that have appeared in two Hallyburton Johnstone Shield finals and four Super Smash finals with her side having won two Super Smash finals (2019/20, 2021/22) and one of the HBJ finals (2022/23). She credits the fact that winning is like “a healthy drug, it’s rewarding, it makes you feel good, especially when you put such hard work into it.” She also notes the fact that coming into a winning environment “gives me a buzz… and makes me want to perform and win more titles”
During her time in Wellington, Jetly has had some good company in the spin club with the likes of international players such as Amelia Kerr and Leigh Kasperek. She tells us that Jetly credits both of them for being fantastic mentors and that it “has truly been an experience.” Jetly thinks she is incredibly lucky and that playing alongside the likes of Kasperek and Kerr puts her in the best position that she can be.
On the matter of how Kerr and Kasperek's experiences can help the younger players she says that it is important for them to “observe them in the nets, their style of play, how they conduct themselves on the field, how they adapt to different conditions, and how they lead a side.”
Over the last year, Jetly has gained a massive following on social media with over 90,000 followers on Instagram. She says that the “following I do have are such a supportive community and it has been such a journey entertaining and adding value into their lives.” Jetly tells us that it is a career she wants to further work on after cricket.
She was asked what is something you could wish you’d be able to go back and tell her childhood self. She says that she wishes she could say to “never stop being quirky, crazy. That it will pay dividends in expressing yourself.”
Jetly says that she would love to travel to India to play cricket. There are multiple reasons why she wants to with the fact that it is a thriving environment for cricket being one and also that she is half Indian herself. She tells Kiwi Cricket Kōrero that her Dad was brought up in Delhi and that it would “mean so much to play over there for him/my family name.”
This season there have been a few HBJ Shield games under lights with Wellington featuring in the first-ever Women’s Day/Night HBJ game. Jetly played in this game and took figures of 0/31 from her six overs, including a maiden. She says that whilst it could prepare you for international cricket, she thinks that it makes HBJ a little more interesting and also says “How good we get the morning off.”
On the fact of playing under lights, Jelty says that is “cool” and also how there will “be good lighting for the camera, so I need to make sure I got my makeup on! …. I am joking.”
In high school, cricket wasn’t a big thing for Jetly. She focused more on netball as she wanted to play for Silver Ferns, but Jetly said “I am too short.”
Whilst playing sports, she also spent a lot of time on her studies as she did the international baccalaureate. She tells us that this was 8 subjects with the standard being very high and the demands to get things done were massive.
During her last year of school, she was offered her first contract with the Wellington Blaze and “it was the most rewarding thing ever.” She also explains to us her daily routine during her time in school:
6:30 am - Gym
8:00 am - Get to school, study
8:25 am - School starts
Noon - Meetings, studying, and training
3:30 pm - School finishing and start studying
4:30 pm - Training at the Cello Basin Reserve
7:30 pm - Get home
8:30 pm - Study
On a game day, she likes her visualisation strategy where she listens to music and envisions the game. Following this is coffee, because “caffeine is necessary” and then she starts to get herself mobile.
Over the last few years there have been multiple Women’s sports World Cups played in Aotearoa with the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup and the Women’s Rugby World Cup both played in 2022, whilst the Women’s Football World Cup was played in 2023. Jetly says that these world cups in Aotearoa have “absolutely” helped put a light on women’s sports. She also says “I am lucky to come from a place such as Aotearoa. They shed a massive light on women’s sports here by encouraging people to watch our games, advertising, and investing so much more in our players. It is exciting growth for such a small country!”
Comments