Flintoff back for Stars, Harris nearing comeback

Tess Flintoff is poised to make a welcome return from injury for the Melbourne Stars on Friday, while Brisbane Heat are confident Laura Harris’s comeback is not far away.

Flintoff missed the early stages of Weber WBBL|09 with a hamstring injury, then a back concern kept her on the sidelines for longer.

It has been a frustrating setback for the 20-year-old allrounder, who was called into Australia’s ODI squad in Ireland as injury cover in July and who then signed with Birmingham Phoenix in The Hundred.

But the wait is almost over for Flintoff, who has been named in the Stars’ squad to meet the Brisbane Heat.

Her arrival comes too late to help the Stars’ extremely slim finals prospects, but nonetheless she will bolster a pace attack that will miss Rhys McKenna for the rest of the season with a foot injury.

Flintoff’s exciting middle-order batting – she broke the record for fastest WBBL fifty last season – will also come in handy for the Stars’ faltering batting line-up.

Meanwhile Harris is nearing a comeback for Brisbane Heat after a calf injury kept her on the sidelines throughout the season so far.

The ultra-aggressive middle-order batter is aiming to return for the Heat’s likely finals campaign, but could even be back as soon as the November 24 ‘Stadium Series’ showdown with Perth Scorchers at Adelaide Oval.

If Harris does come back for the finals it’ll leave the Heat with a selection headache, with their already batting-heavy line-up having helped them to seven wins in 10 matches so far in WBBL|09.

It is less clear whether Adelaide Strikers will regain Darcie Brown’s services this season, as the Australian fast bowler remains on the sidelines rehabilitating a hamstring injury picked up in October’s ODI series against West Indies.

Australia expect Brown to be fit in time for the one-off Test in Mumbai on December 21, but coach Shelley Nitschke on Wednesday said her WBBL availability was less certain.

Sydney Thunder meanwhile will complete their WBBL campaign with only three of the four overseas players they contracted for this season.

Lauren Bell has been recalled by England to a training camp in Oman ahead of their tour of India in early December.

Bell’s recall is unsurprising, given she has been largely kept out of the Thunder’s XI by Chamari Athapaththu, who initially signed with the club as a replacement overseas player but who then made herself un-droppable with her red-hot form at the top of the order after initially filling in for an unwell Marizanne Kapp in the Thunder's opening game.

Right-arm quick Bell featured in two of the Thunder's 10 games this season.

Weber WBBL|09 Standings

Team	Matches played M	Wins W	Losses L	Ties T	No results N/R	Net Run Rate NRR	Deductions Ded.	Total points PTS
1 Adelaide Strikers Women STR	14	11	3	0	0	1.154	0	22
2 Perth Scorchers Women SCO	14	8	6	0	0	0.784	0	16
3 Brisbane Heat Women HEA	14	8	6	0	0	0.203	0	16
4 Sydney Thunder Women THU	14	7	6	0	1	0.298	0	15
5 Sydney Sixers Women SIX	14	7	7	0	0	-0.253	0	14
6 Hobart Hurricanes Women HUR	14	6	7	0	1	-0.597	0	13
7 Melbourne Stars Women STA	14	6	8	0	0	-0.779	0	12
8 Melbourne Renegades Women REN	14	2	12	0	0	-0.978	0	4

Legend

M: Matches played

W: Wins

L: Losses

T: Ties

N/R: No results

NRR: Net Run Rate

Ded.: Deductions

PTS: Total points