WBBL06 ready to take flight even as the players are confined to the Village

gets underway in Sydney on Sunday (October 25). Some of the best cricketers from the world have descended in the city to fight it out for 59 matches in 35 days with the summit clash on November 29 to decide the winner of the marquee T20 tournament.

The sixth installment was just expected to be a bigger and more colourful continuation of the previous season with Australia hoping to ride the momentum of the home T20 World Cup that saw 86,174 fans turn up at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in the final. But like everything else the COVID-19 is having an impact on the WBBL, too. As a result, all the games will be spread across five venues in only in Sydney - North Sydney Oval (NSO), Hurstville Oval, Sydney Showground, Drummoyne Oval, and Blacktown International Sports Park.

The city-based franchise league, which started in 2015 mirroring the men’s event, has gone from being played under the shadows of their male counterparts to a wholesome experience everyone looks forward to in the Australian summer. It had its big moment of reckoning when the tournament was played as a standalone edition for the first time during the fifth season making it one of the vital moving parts in the well-oiled engine of Australian cricket.

Australia and Adelaide Strikers’ pace bowler Megan Schutt, in her column in The Guardian, talked about the relevance of the competition not just in terms of Australia’s cricketing future, but also as a powerful platform for change. A WBBL 'Village' has been created at the Sydney Olympic Park to accommodate all the eight squads and the support personnel adhering to bio-secure protocols. Having all of them confined within the bio-bubble will create a unique environment and will also bring new challenges with it.

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Melbourne Renegades’ Sophie Molineux felt having all of them in the Olympic Park is going to be an awesome experience for them. “It’s like a big athletes’ village in there – a big dining hall, café, breakfast, and everything like that. I think it will be awesome,” she said.

While the crowds will be allowed in all matches at Showground Stadium and in some of the matches at NSO and Blacktown, the other two venues will be closed for the public. Fan engagement has been one of the biggest aspects of the vibrant WBBL experience for the crowds and it remains to be seen how it pans out this time with the players in the bio-secure environment during the entire duration of the tournament.

The pre-season trade window saw an unprecedented number of player movements between the sides resulting even in a change in identity with some of the clubs. Fans will have to get used to an Adelaide Strikers sans the Smash Sisters - Suzie Bates and Sophie Devine - and there won’t be the familiar, reassuring sight of Beth Mooney going about her job in teal for the Brisbane Heat.

The Smash Sisters are separated for WBBL06 © Brendon Thorne/Getty Images

Perth Scorchers emerged as the indisputable winner of the contracting period luring both Devine and Mooney in the squad. Meg Lanning returns to lead the Melbourne Stars as the 2019 wooden-spooners have got a revamped look with the inclusions of Natalie Sciver and Katherine Brunt. Renegades will have an exchange of sorts at the helm with Amy Satterthwaite coming back post motherhood, while last years’ captain Jess Duffin will miss out because of the birth of her child.

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South Africa’s Nadine de Klerk and England’s Sarah Glenn will be the overseas newbies on the block with the former joining the defending champions Heat while Glenn is part of the star-studded Scorchers line-up. Six young Australians - Georgia Voll, Georgia Wyllie, Ella Hayward, Anika Learoyd, Sophie Day, and Georgia Gall - will also have their first WBBL experience as part of their respective squads.



While the newbies will be trying to make their presence felt, the tournament will miss some of the biggest stars of the game due to injuries. Hobart Hurricanes suffered the biggest loss with speedster Tayla Vlaeminck being ruled out of the competition with a foot injury. They also won’t have the services of injured leg-spinner Maisy Gibson. Young Olivia Porter will also be missing the action for Sydney Thunder as she is also ruled out of the season.

Sydney Sixers, the most successful franchise in the league with four final appearances in five attempts, have kept the core of the squad intact and are confident that their talismanic skipper Ellyse Perry will return from the long injury layoff to lead the side from the start of the tournament itself. The Perry-factor will have a big impact on the two-time champions even if she returns only as a batter. Similarly, Strikers are hoping for the return of their skipper Bates, but her fellow New Zealand teammate Lea Tahuhu is a doubtful starter for the Renegades.

ALSO READ: Changed gameplan reaps rewards for Natalie Sciver

Like in the seasons before, there will be a bunch of youngsters in action hoping to make a name for themselves in the league. Hannah Darlington, who won the young player of the year in WBBL05, and teen sensation Phoebe Litchfield have earned themselves a regular place in the Sydney Thunder XI and will look to further their credentials in the absence of the retired duo of Rene Farrell and Alex Blackwell.

Phoebe Litchfield had an impressive WBBL05. © Getty Images

Litchfield set to join the side after the school exams and she will have plenty of company in the bubble with Thunder fielding a predominantly young squad having almost half the players in the roster aged 20 or less. Their Sydney rivals Sixers aren’t far behind when it comes to the young brigade with the trio of Hayley Silver-Holmes, Stella Campbell, and Maddy Darke in their kitty.

The spotlight could be on young Annabel Sutherland, who earned her maiden central contract with CA, as she returns to the WBBL with the international experience and quarantines wisdom under her belt having featured in the T20 World Cup as well as the recently concluded Australia-New Zealand series at the Allan Border Field in Brisbane.

The tournament also provides an opportunity for some of the experienced figures in the Australian domestic setup to prove their mettle even as the race to make it to the international squad is increasingly becoming tougher. Erin Burns, who missed out on a national contract, will be raring to go after sitting out during all the matches in the T20 World Cup and the recently-concluded New Zealand series.

Tahlia McGrath’s career has been on an upward journey since the last WBBL season that eventually led her to a national contract and a call-up to the international arena. The 24-year-old will play a key role for the Strikers as she looks further to build her base stronger with a solid performance during the season. Allrounder Sammy-Jo Johnson moved to Thunder having a point to prove after narrowly missing out on a central contract.

ALSO READ: Despite Devine-Mooney presence, Jones expresses desire to bat in the top order for Scorchers in WBBL06

Apart from the handful of players who were part of England versus West Indies series and the trans-Tasman series, others haven’t had much of cricket under their belt since the end of the T20 World Cup. South African internationals and Australia domestic players haven’t had the experience of the quarantine bubble and the younger players, in particular, could find it difficult to adjust to the congested nature and crammed schedule in the 'Village'. This combined with the player movement could make this season the most open tournament yet since its inception.

Sixers will be hoping to recapture their glory after missing out on the semi-final berth for the first time last season, while Heat won’t let the change in personnel affect their goal of making it a hat-trick of titles. Thunder will be hoping to repeat their triumph during the inaugural season and the rest of the teams aren’t far behind in terms of personnel to challenge these sides for a place in the final four. It will be interesting to see which teams will be left with enough ammunition and energy by the time the business end of the tournament comes calling.

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