Rachael Haynes returns to Thunder squad

losing by seven runs to Perth Scorchers on Sunday (November 10) Sydney Thunder have announced one change to the squad that that will take on the orange army on Tuesday (November 12). Rachael Haynes, the regular skipper, returns to the squad after missing the game against Scorchers with a foot infection. She will replace Kate Peterson, the 16-year-old batter.

“Rach has been given the all-clear by the doctor, so she’s flying from Sydney today to join us this afternoon,” said Trevor Griffin, head coach of Thunder. “She’ll have a hit this afternoon and all going well, she’ll be back in the side to take on the Scorchers tomorrow."

“Rach has been a superb leader for us this season so far and having her back will give us that stability and focus around how we want to play."

In Haynes' absence, former skipper, Alex Blackwell led the side on Sunday. Despite the narrow loss, they have retained their place at no.2 on the table with nine points.

Thunder are keen to bounce back with a positive result on Tuesday. Griffin said that the key would be for the team not to panic and focus on doing the basics right if they are to secure a win.

“It was a loss, but we are still in a great position," he said. "We’re second on the table and we’ve played some really good cricket at times, even against the Scorchers on Sunday we played some good cricket at times. We just need to be a bit tidier and a little bit more precise in the way we go about things, the one-percenters cost us the game."

“We’ll have a debrief; be clear about what we want to do, make sure our plans are correct and focus on going again tomorrow.”

20-year-old Tahlia Wilson's performance with the bat was one of the highlights for Thunder in their match against Scorchers. The youngster's unbeaten knock of 47 took Thunder to the brink of victory, but she was unable to find support at the other end following Blackwell's dismissal. Griffin admitted that he was particularly pleased with her development.

“I thought she batted superbly well," he added. "What we see from Tahlia at training is really exciting, and for her to go out and do that on a WBBL stage is really impressive. She’s got a bright future ahead of her."

“We ask all the players to go out and try to give us coaches and captain a selection headache, and she’s certainly done that.”