Heather Knight, the captain of England, will head
Sydney Thunder in the WBBL this season, replacing the departed Rachael Haynes.
Thunder had a poor season last year but had a strong
draught last month, adding England’s Lauren Bell and South Africa’s Marizanne
Kapp to Knight.
This implies that Lisa Keightley, the former England
coach who took over as Thunder’s manager to replace Trevor Gryphon after the
2022–23 season produced just one victory in 14 games, and Knight will reteam in
a leadership capacity.
“We’re thrilled to have Heather captain Thunder
this summer. She’s an incredibly experienced leader and the perfect fit to take
us into this new era at the club.” Keightley said. “She’s one of the
most gutsy and determined individuals I’ve worked with and I’m excited to see
the effect she’ll have on the group.
“Her positive energy will be a great asset to an
already strong side with the other international signings and domestic players
we have lined up.”
Knight was previously part of the Thunder side which won
the title in 2020-21 when she was their leading run-scorer with 446 at 40.54
and a strike-rate of 124.92
Thunder start their WBBL campaign with a local derby
against Sydney Sixers at North Sydney Oval on October 22