Grace Harris will make a welcome return to the teal at Allan Border Field on Wednesday night
Harris returns from calf injury as Heat target first win of WBBL|11
Brisbane Heat will welcome back Grace Harris as they hunt their first win of the Weber WBBL season against Perth Scorchers on Wednesday night.
The powerful Australia allrounder will make her first appearance since she injured her calf in the final pre-World Cup one-dayer against India in New Delhi in September.
That grade two strain ended her ODI World Cup dream, as she was forced to return home before the tournament began.
Harris sat out Brisbane's opening defeat to Melbourne Renegades on Sunday and will be a welcome addition at the top of the order against the Scorchers for the game at Allan Border Field, with both clubs hunting their first win of the season.
Brisbane Heat squad v Scorchers: Jess Jonassen (c), Lily Bassinghthwaighte, Lucy Bourke, Sianna Ginger, Lucy Hamilton, Nicola Hancock, Grace Harris, Chinelle Henry, Nadine de Klerk, Charli Knott (vc), Annie O’Neil, Georgia Redmayne, Jemimah Rodrigues
In Harris' absence the Heat promoted in-form South Africa allrounder Nadine de Klerk, who took the World Cup by storm scoring 200 runs striking at 131.64 batting at No.8, but her first crack at opening in a 20-over game saw her play more of an accumulative hand as she hit a 38-ball 40.
With Harris returning, de Klerk could return to her more familiar role as a finisher, where she would pack a serious punch alongside West Indian Chinelle Henry.
Harris is more likely to partner Charli Knott at the top of the order, following Brisbane's decision to promote the rising allrounder in place of long-time opener Georgia Redmayne, who slipped down into the middle-to-lower order.
With Harris given the greenlight to resume playing, Bonnie Berry will drop out of the Heat's gameday squad.
Harris was Brisbane's leading run-scorer last season with 277 runs at a strike rate of 133.
The Scorchers meanwhile have named an unchanged squad from the group that suffered a 10-wicket defeat to Sydney Sixers at the WACA Ground.
Their batters will be looking for an improved display after being bundled out for 109 as Ashleigh Gardner claimed her first five-wicket WBBL haul, before Ellyse Perry and Sophia Dunkley mowed down their target in 12.5 overs.
Perth Scorchers squad v Heat: Sophie Devine (c), Chloe Ainsworth, Maddy Darke, Amy Edgar, Mikayla Hinkley, Ebony Hoskin, Freya Kemp, Alana King, Katie Mack, Lilly Mills, Beth Mooney, Paige Scholfield, Ruby Strange
Weber WBBL|11 Standings
| Team | M | W | L | T | N/R | NRR | Ded. | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
HUR
|
10 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0.662 | 0 | 15 |
|
2
SIX
|
10 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | -0.313 | 0 | 13 |
|
3
SCO
|
10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | -0.132 | 0 | 12 |
|
4
STA
|
10 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0.629 | 0 | 11 |
|
5
REN
|
10 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0.121 | 0 | 10 |
|
6
STR
|
10 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0.077 | 0 | 9 |
|
7
THU
|
10 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 1 | -0.124 | 0 | 9 |
|
8
HEA
|
10 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 1 | -0.869 | 0 | 1 |
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
T: Ties
N/R: No results
NRR: Net Run Rate
Ded.: Deductions
PTS: Total points