Cricket - ICC Women's World Cup - England v New Zealand - Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium, Visakhapatnam, India - October 26, 2025 New Zealand's Sophie Devine reacts after playing her last one day international match REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis
BENGALURU, Jan 16 (Reuters) - New Zealand captain Sophie Devine has called for a review of fielding rules and boundary lengths in women's cricket, saying current conditions give batters too much of an advantage.
Under current rules no more than four fielders are allowed outside the restricted area in non-powerplay overs, a regulation aimed at producing more boundaries and giving fans more entertainment with higher scores.
In the Women's Premier League the maximum boundary length is set at 60m, while in the men's tournament it can reach up to 77m.
"There needs to be a serious look at the four-fielders-out rule. We are pretty close to going in line with the men and having five fielders out on the boundary," she told reporters on Thursday.
"We've all seen the power that the women's game has got now and I don't think having five fielders out would make a hindrance to the possibility and opportunities to score more runs."
Devine, who was signed by Gujarat Giants in the 2026 Women's Premier League auction and ranks among the league's top five run-scorers and wicket-takers this season, said the regulations made it difficult for bowlers.
"The balance is distorted towards batters, especially when you're playing on wickets that are so flat and offering not too much for the bowlers," Devine added.
The all-rounder also addressed the rising use of the 'retired-out' strategy in the WPL, which gained attention after Gujarat's Ayushi Soni and UP Warriorz's Harleen Deol exited mid-innings during the tournament's opening week.
"At the end of the day, those decisions are always made with the team coming first and what's going to be best for the team to be able to gain momentum," she said, expressing her preference for this strategy over the impact player rule, which allows teams to substitute a player mid-match.
"I like the idea that you can do all skills, or certainly bat, and still be able to go on the field," she added.
(Reporting by Suramya Kaushik in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
