Photo Credit: Sydney Sixers
Head coach Ben Sawyer confirms Sixers skipper is set to return for WBBL opener
Sydney Sixers head coach Ben Sawyer has confirmed that captain Ellyse Perry is fit to lead her side in their opening match of WBBL|06 against the Sydney Thunder at North Sydney Oval this Sunday.
“She’s good to go. She’s been bowling and batting unrestricted at training, I don’t see any reason why she is not going to play,” Sawyer said.
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The news is a huge boost for the Sixers ahead of the Sydney Smash on Sunday afternoon that opens the campaign for both clubs. The Sixers meet the Adelaide Strikers on Monday, also at North Sydney Oval.
v. Sydney Thunder
11 matches – 6 wins, 4 losses and one Super Over loss (the Sixers won both Sydney Smash matches in WBBL|05)
v. Adelaide Strikers
11 matches – 10 wins, one loss (that loss coming last season)
Perry missed the final five matches of last season due to a shoulder injury, and a torn hamstring during the Women’s T20 World Cup in March forced to her to have major surgery, embarking on a long rehabilitation process.
“She has worked amazingly hard in her rehab to get to this point and she should be applauded for the effort that she has made to not only return but to also work on aspects of her game to make her even better and I am excited to see that out on the park this tournament,” said Sawyer.
The Sixers narrowly missed the WBBL finals for the first time in their history last season but entering WBBL|06 the Sixers still boast one of the most talented squads in the competition, many of whom have been part of the Sixers squad since the first edition.
Perry, Alyssa Healy, Ashleigh Gardner, South African allrounder Marizanne Kapp and Sixers’ all-time leading wicket taker Sarah Aley, have all been part of the Sixers family from the very beginning.
Kapp’s wife and South African captain Dane van Niekerk joined the club in WBBL|02 and Australian player Erin Burns became a Sixer in WBBL|03. Inaugural Sixers player Ange Reakes also re-joins the club this season.
Given the unprecedented environment of living in a bio-secure Village during the tournament, Sawyer hopes that experience and stability within the squad will be an advantage.
“This season is going to throw enough challenges at people … and things are going to happen that are out of our control just because of the situation and being in the village.
“Having a group that knows each other very well will hopefully be a really important point for us.”
The experience is now complemented by the exciting youth of fast bowler Stella Campbell, allrounder Hayley Silver-Holmes and the pending return of left-arm quick Lauren Cheatle from a shoulder reconstruction.
Despite the restrictions forced by the coronavirus pandemic, Sawyer said it was important that the coaching staff ensured the players had a bit of space within the Village lifestyle but could not be more complementary of the set-up.
“It’s amazing. In terms of the effort that people have gone to … to just see the little things like the signage around, people have obviously done an amazing amount of work both at Cricket Australia and Cricket NSW to make it as comfortable and interesting as they possibly can.”
The Sixers WBBL|06 campaign begins this Sunday 25 October against the Thunder at North Sydney Oval. Watch live on the Seven Network, Fox Cricket and Kayo Sports.
The Sixers’ squad for WBBL|06: Sarah Aley, Erin Burns, Stella Campbell, Lauren Cheatle, Maddy Darke, Ash Gardner, Lisa Griffith, Alyssa Healy, Jodie Hicks, Emma Hughes, Marizanne Kapp, Ellyse Perry ©, Ange Reakes, Hayley Silver-Holmes, Dane van Niekerk
Name of Author: Sydney Sixers
The Sydney Sixers are an Australian professional Twenty20 cricket team competing in the Big Bash League (BBL). Based at the Sydney Cricket Ground, the Sixers, along with the Sydney Thunder, succeeded the New South Wales Blues from the now-defunct KFC Twenty20 Big Bash.
