Alyssa Healy will make a welcome return to the magenta as the Sixers look to continue a successful start to their new era on Thursday night
Healy returns as 'ruthless' Sixers eye showdown with Hurricanes
Alyssa Healy is set to return for Sydney Sixers' showdown with Hobart Hurricanes on Thursday night, as she manages her latest brush with injury.
Healy missed the Sixers' tournament opener against Perth Scorchers last Sunday due to a thumb injury picked up in Australia's ODI World Cup semi-final loss to India.
The 35-year-old has been named in the Sixers' 13-player squad to play the Hurricanes, after getting through a training session on Wednesday afternoon, and is set to bolster a top-order already full of confidence after thrashing the Scorchers by 10 wickets at the WACA Ground.
Speaking to media on Wednesday, Sixers coach Matthew Mott said he had been confident Healy would return, with her availability to play dependant on her ability to tolerate wearing a splint while batting and wicketkeeping.
"I've been led to believe the type of injury she's got, it's more about just managing the pain," Mott said.
"So functionally she's fine and if that's the case (that she can manage it) she'll definitely be in the team.
"(She's) very tough, I think most 'keepers are. Most 'keepers don't give away too much, they're constantly in pain and their fingers and thumbs cop a battering, so I think it's part and parcel of the job that they do.
"But they also don't like missing games, and Midge is exactly like that, she's desperate to play.
"She's one of the best players in the world and has been for a long time, so she's very crucial (to the side), she's also one of the spiritual leaders of the Sixers as well, so that leadership helps us a lot."
Healy had copped a blow to her right thumb when she dropped a sharp chance off Jemimah Rodrigues while keeping up to fast bowler Kim Garth during the semi-final in Mumbai on October 30.
Her return is a welcome one for the Sixers after she managed just five appearances for the club in the past two WBBL seasons.
She began WBBL|10 in a moonboot after injuring her foot at the 2024 T20 World Cup in the UAE that ruled her out of Australia's semi-final loss to South Africa and missed the Sixers' opening two games before making a return.
But her season was cut short after just four matches when she picked up a knee injury later in the tournament.
Healy's 2023 season was even more unfortunate, ruled out of the tournament after the Sixers' first game when she suffered significant damage to her right index finger trying to separate a "rough and tumble" between her two Staffordshire bull terriers.
Healy's return is one of two changes to the Sixers' squad, with Lauren Kua also coming in while Courtney Sippel and Elsa Hunter have both been omitted.
Sydney Sixers squad v Hurricanes: Ashleigh Gardner (c), Caoimhe Bray, Maitlan Brown, Erin Burns, Mathilda Carmichael, Lauren Cheatle, Sophia Dunkley, Alyssa Healy, Amelia Kerr, Lauren Kua, Emma Manix-Geeves, Ellyse Perry, Mady Villiers
Speaking on Wednesday, Mott said the Sixers had pledged to be "ruthless" as they enter a new era under his and Ashleigh Gardner's leadership in WBBL|11.
The Sydney club immediately lived up to that ethos with their 10-wicket win over the Scorchers at the WACA Ground in their first game of the season.
After Ashleigh Gardner's five-wicket haul kept Perth to 109, openers Ellyse Perry and Sophia Dunkley surged to victory in 12.5 overs.
"The way we talked about it was being ruthless and I think it was a ruthless performance," Mott said.
"Full credit to our bowling group, that was well under a par score on that wicket and everyone chipped in.
"The Scorchers on their home patch is always difficult … they've got a bit of a fortress over there."
"I think that it was a good signal to the rest of the competition that we're going to play some really good cricket."
The star-studded Hurricanes outfit at North Sydney Oval will be a different prospect, with Elyse Villani's team coming in full of confidence after pulling off their highest-ever run chase on Sunday.
With a batting line-up containing England stars Danni Wyatt-Hodge and Natalie Sciver-Brunt alongside Villani, Lizelle Lee, Nicola Carey and Heather Graham, Mott said Hobart would present a solid test.
"We know full well that it's a very different opposition," he said.
"We're playing against I think on paper one of the strongest teams in the competition.
"It whets the appetite for an enthralling contest, it's one we've looked forward to from when (the schedule) came out and we saw the strength of their team."
The Hurricanes meanwhile have named an unchanged squad, which travelled to Sydney on Tuesday in preparation for the match.
Hobart Hurricanes squad v Sixers: Nicola Carey, Heather Graham, Ruth Johnston, Lizelle Lee, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Hayley Silver-Holmes, Lauren Smith, Linsey Smith, Molly Strano, Rachel Trenaman, Elyse Villani, Callie Wilson, Danni Wyatt-Hodge, Kathryn Bryce (Travelling Associate Player)
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
STA
|
9 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0.863 | 0 | 11 |
|
3
SIX
|
9 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | -0.365 | 0 | 11 |
|
4
REN
|
10 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0.121 | 0 | 10 |
|
5
SCO
|
9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | -0.189 | 0 | 10 |
|
6
STR
|
9 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0.097 | 0 | 9 |
|
7
THU
|
9 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 1 | -0.296 | 0 | 7 |
|
8
HEA
|
9 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 1 | -0.944 | 0 | 1 |
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
T: Ties
N/R: No results
NRR: Net Run Rate
Ded.: Deductions
PTS: Total points