Phoenix Karaka (born 6 November 1993) is a
New Zealand netball international. She was a member of the
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
teams that won the
2019 Netball World Cup
The 2019 Netball World Cup (also known as the 2019 Vitality Netball World Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the 15th edition of the INF Netball World Cup. It was held from 12–21 July 2019 at the Liverpool Arena in Liverpool, England with matches ...
.
Christine Papali'i is her mother.
Career
Following her success at secondary school level at
Auckland Girls' Grammar School
Auckland Girls' Grammar School (AGGS) is a New Zealand secondary school for girls located in Newton, New Zealand, Newton, Auckland. Established in 1878 as Auckland Girls' High School, it is one of the oldest secondary institutions in the countr ...
, Karaka rose through the ranks at age group level as a part of both the NZ Secondary Schools and NZ Under-21 teams, including the victorious Under-21 side at the Youth World Cup in Glasgow in 2013.
Karaka signed her first professional contract with
Southern Steel for the
2013 ANZ Championship, and remained a part of the Steel for the next three seasons before signing with the
Central Pulse
Central Pulse are a New Zealand netball team based in Wellington. Between 2008 and 2016, they played in the ANZ Championship. Since 2017 they have represented Netball Central in the ANZ Premiership. Netball Central is the governing body that ...
in 2016 after consistently impressive performances, including being ranked 3rd overall for intercepts in the
2015 ANZ Championship.
She captained
Northern Mystics
Northern Mystics are a New Zealand netball team based in Auckland. Between 2008 and 2016, they played in the ANZ Championship. Since 2017 they have represented Netball Northern in the ANZ Premiership. Netball Northern is the governing body t ...
in 2019 and 2020. but pulled out the following year due to pregnancy
International
Karaka made her debut for
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
on their 2014 Tour of the UK where she was initially selected as a training partner, however was soon promoted to the main squad following injury concerns to
Casey Kopua.
She participated in the exhibition games against Scotland and England A, before making her test debut off as a substitute in the final stages of the Silver Fern's 17-goal victory over England on 20 January 2014.
Karaka made a triumphant return after earning her spot in the
2019 Netball World Cup
The 2019 Netball World Cup (also known as the 2019 Vitality Netball World Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the 15th edition of the INF Netball World Cup. It was held from 12–21 July 2019 at the Liverpool Arena in Liverpool, England with matches ...
winning team. Karaka again returned following the birth of her daughter to the
2022 Netball Quad Series
Karaka was named in the team of 12 for the
2022 Commonwealth Games
The 2022 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XXII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Birmingham 2022, were an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth of Nations that took place in Birmingham, England betw ...
.
Personal life
Phoenix Karaka's partner is
All Black Patrick TuipulotuPhoenix Karaka eager to back partner Patrick Tuipulotu's own World Cup bid - 'Hope I'm going to Tokyo!'
/ref>
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Karaka, Phoenix
1993 births
Living people
New Zealand netball players
New Zealand international netball players
Central Pulse players
Southern Steel players
2019 Netball World Cup players
2015 Netball World Cup players
Northern Mystics players
Netball players from Auckland
ANZ Premiership players
ANZ Championship players
People educated at Auckland Girls' Grammar School
Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for New Zealand
Commonwealth Games bronze medallists in netball
Netball players at the 2022 Commonwealth Games
Medallists at the 2022 Commonwealth Games
New Zealand international Fast5 players
2023 Netball World Cup players
21st-century New Zealand sportswomen