With big hitters, quick bowlers and world-class spinners, they'll be looking to send off the 'Renegades' name out with a bang
Molineux, Twining bring brash Aussie brand to the 'Gades
Sophie Molineux and new coach Gavan Twining are looking to bring Australia's bold brand of T20 cricket to the WBBL as they look to send out the 'Renegades' moniker out with a bang.
Australia skipper Molineux will lead the club into its final WBBL campaign in its current form, with the licence expected to have been sold by next season.
She'll be in charge of a star-studded list also featuring Aussie teammate Georgia Wareham and West Indies stars Hayley Matthews and Deandra Dottin, while experienced South African Chloe Tryon has joined the club. Tayla Vlaeminck made the move back to the Renegades three seasons ago but has yet to actually play a match since leaving the Hurricanes, so her availability is another huge boon for the club.
With one of the most dynamic lists in the Big Bash – made up of serious pace, world-class spinners and some of the hardest hitters in the game – the Renegades have a clear idea of the type of cricket they want to play.
"We've spoken a little bit around our list and how we want to play our cricket, and I think we've worked out that the Renegades way is to be aggressive and have a bit of edge about us," Molineux told cricket.com.au. "That's what we've gone with in terms of getting some really quick bowlers in there and some big hitters as well. You also have to balance that out with a lot of cricket smarts and experience, and I think we have a nice mix of that.
"I think Gav's used the term 'free hit' ... in the last little bit, which I think could resonate really well with this group.
"We've sort of got nothing to lose … Georgia Wareham and I have reflected a lot on how amazing the time has been with the Renegades over the past 12 years, and the people we've played with, the people we've come across in red.
"This year, a big part of it is to be able to send it off on a really cool note, and I think we've got the list and the support around it to be able to do it."
WBBL|12 club previews
There's been a bit of change to the group that finished just outside the top four last season, with Twining – who is also an Australia assistant – replacing title-winning coach Simon Helmot, while five players have departed: Sarah Coyte has returned to the Sixers and England's Alice Capsey will also be wearing magenta this season, native South Australian Emma de Broughe signed with the Strikers, and Naomi Stalenberg has switched to the Stars. Left-arm spinner Charis Bekker, meanwhile, has stepped away from the game to pursue studying opportunities in the USA, while England's Davina Perrin was not re-signed.
Wareham was a revelation in WBBL|11, named player of the tournament after starring with the ball and backing it up with her best ever campaign with the bat.
She was the Renegades' leading run-scorer, hitting 277 runs at 39 with a strike rate of 147 – unfortunately, she did not have enough support in the absence of Windies star Matthews. Courtney Webb was the club's next highest run-scorer with 176 at 22 with a strike rate of 117, followed by Capsey with 170 runs.
Wareham was also by far the club's leading wicket-taker, picking up 19 at 10.94 while maintaining an economy rate of 5.47. Capsey, who tends to be used more as a part-time spinner, was their next most prolific with the ball, taking 13 at 10.84. The limited availability of skipper Molineux, who played just six matches as she managed a knee concern and took three wickets, did not help their cause.
Last season
Result: Fifth (5 wins, 5 losses)
Most runs: Georgia Wareham (277 runs, ave 38, SR 147.34)
Most wickets: Georgia Wareham (19 wickets, ave 10.94, econ 5.47)
WBBL|12 squad
Deandra Dottin (West Indies), Nicole Faltum, Tess Flintoff, Milly Illingworth, Sara Kennedy, Hayley Matthews (West Indies), Sophie Molineux, Olivia Porter, Sophie Reid, Chloe Tryon, Tayla Vlaeminck, Georgia Wareham, Courtney Webb, Annie Wikman
Ins: Chloe Tryon, Sophie Reid (Stars), Olivia Porter, Annie Wikman
Outs: Alice Capsey (Sixers), Emma de Broughe (Strikers), Sarah Coyte (Sixers), Naomi Stalenberg (Stars), Charis Bekker, Davina Perrin (England), Issy Wong (England)
Internationals: Deandra Dottin (West Indies), Hayley Matthews (West Indies), Chloe Tryon (South Africa)
Head coach: Gavan Twining (replacing Simon Helmot)
Season schedule
Possible best XI
Deandra Dottin, Hayley Matthews, Courtney Webb, Sophie Molineux (c), Georgia Wareham, Chloe Tryon, Annie Wikman, Nicole Faltum (wk), Tess Flintoff, Milly Illingworth, Tayla Vlaeminck
Player availability
South Africa will host India in a Test match starting on December 9, but it's not yet clear how this may impact Tryon's availability for finals.
Overseas recruits
Hayley Matthews (West Indies): Matthews, one of the architects of the Renegades' title win in 2024 and the world's top-ranked T20I allrounder, was forced to pull out of last season's defence after shoulder surgery. The off-spin bowling allrounder will strengthen the club's stocks with both bat and ball, while her leadership nous will again support skipper Sophie Molineux. Matthews produced a career-best campaign in WBBL|10, scoring 324 runs at a strike rate of 130.6 and 14 wickets, a haul that earned selection in the WBBL|10 Team of the Tournament. The 28-year-old saved her best for last, scoring a crucial 69 from 61 deliveries before snaring 2-24 to claim player-of-the-match honours in the Renegades' seven-run win over the Brisbane Heat in the decider at the MCG.
Deandra Dottin (West Indies): Veteran allrounder Dottin has penned a new one-year deal with the Renegades, for what will be her third season with the club. A member of the title-winning team from 2024, she will again bolster the club's pace bowling stocks while her explosive – and versatile – skills with the bat could see her play in the top-order or be deployed in more of a finishing role.
Chloe Tryon (South Africa): Tryon brings her aggressive middle-order batting and left-arm spin to the Renegades. Her last appearance in the WBBL was in 2024, when she struggled to find her best playing for the Hurricanes, scoring 83 runs and taking four wickets across nine matches. She was a force to be reckoned with a season earlier for the Sixers, however, hammering 277 runs at a strike rate of 131.27 and taking nine scalps – and it's that version of Tryon the Renegades will be hoping for this season.
Inside word with Renegades coach Gavan Twining and captain Sophie Molineux
Return of Tayla Vlaeminck
Tayla Vlaeminck is poised to end five years in the Big Bash wilderness. Vlaeminck last played a WBBL game on November 20, 2021 – back then, she was with the Hobart Hurricanes and had just completed a successful season after returning from the serious foot injury that ruled her out of the 2020 home T20 World Cup. She made the move back to the Renegades in 2022, but a series of ill-timed setbacks ruled her out of each of the past four WBBL seasons. It means her last appearance for the Renegades remains December 23, 2018.
"Seeing what Tay's been through firsthand over the last few years, she's one of 'Wolf' (Wareham) and I's best mates, and for us three to be able to play cricket again together in red, it'll be really cool," Molineux said. "Even though she hasn't been on the field, she's been a really big part of the Renegades over the past few years, and we're all just really excited to see her back out there. She's bowling really quick at the moment, so she's going to have a massive role for us."
Who will open the batting?
The Renegades rolled with a combination of Courtney Webb and Davina Perrin for the majority of last season, but with Perrin struggling for form, Emma de Broughe was elevated to join her fellow South Australian. In the final matches of the season, it was Deandra Dottin who opened alongside Webb.
With Hayley Matthews, the world's top-ranked T20 allrounder and West Indies' opening batter, back in the fold, it seems natural she will resume her role at the top of the order. It's likely she would be joined by Webb, but Dottin could be another option if the Renegades needed to make a change.
"There's probably a few options," Twining said. "Hayley's number one, captain of the West Indies, and a proven player in all competitions around the world up the top. So she'd be one, and then at the moment, Courtney Webb – I know two years ago she and Hayley (formed) a really good combination the year the Renegades won it, so we're definitely thinking about trying those two again, and I know they loved batting together. So if they bring the best out in each other, then that's a really good combination for us at the top.
"(Dottin could bat) anywhere – at the moment, we see her as a matchwinner for us, and we think with the ball, obviously she can bowl with a new ball, but she's also very good at bowling at the death. And batting-wise as well, that back-end power hitting, trying to find the boundary through the Power Surge and the death of the innings – we see Tess Flintoff, Chloe Tryon and 'D-Dot' all being really important to get the innings home."
The pace cartel
The return of Tayla Vlaeminck after an injury-ravaged run is a huge boost for the Renegades pace stocks. She joins speedster Milly Illingworth, who is fresh off an Australia A tour to India, as is allrounder Tess Flintoff, while Deandra Dottin will also lend her experience to the pace attack. Up-and-comer left-armer Sara Kennedy also brings a point of difference.
"If you look around world cricket, there's not heaps of genuine pace, and then you suddenly get three or four in the one team, it's pretty exciting," Twining said.
The all-star spin attack
When it comes to spin attacks, it does not get much better than the combination of Molineux, Wareham and Matthews. Add in the left-arm option of Chloe Tryon, and the Renegades have every base covered.
"I think the balance of the attack with having four with genuine pace, and then you have your three or four really crafty spinners that you can use in all phases of the game, it gives us a really good balance to be able to chop and change when we need," Twining said. "You can actually use a combination of bowlers and don't have to be stuck on using the same two to open the bowling or the same two or three in the Powerplay, so I think there's a really good balance there for us."
New faces
Chloe Tryon is the only new overseas player on the Renegades' list, while wicketkeeper-batter Sophie Reid has made the switch from rivals Melbourne Stars. The Renegades also looked to the ACT, recruiting exciting batter Annie Wikman alongside the more experienced Olivia Porter.
"(Tryon's) experience as an international player (is important), and we've recruited a few to finish the innings," Twining said. "It's something that speaking to list managers from last year, it was really important that we had that back end. So with her, D-Dot and Tess Flintoff all in that middle-order, that gives us some real good hitting power at the back end of the innings.
"I've had a little bit to do with Olivia through the Thunder a few years ago, and she's really exciting. I know she batted up the top of the order for the ACT at the end of last season, so that gives us another option if we want to go that harder hitter up the top, or we could use her in the middle.
"And then, I really like what I've seen of Annie. She's one of those players that plays spin well and hits the different areas, so very hard to set a field to. I think she can be really versatile for us as well."
Other players to watch
Twining said Renegades assistant Clint McKay, who coached the club at the Spring Challenge, had been impressed by Tess Flintoff's start to the season. "He was ecstatic about the way Tess Flintoff went in; she was really proactive and got the innings moving forward. And I think for Tess, it's just having confidence in her ability. She's a very skilful player, sometimes really tough on herself, but I think she can play a really important role with bat, ball, and she's great in the field as well, so I'm really looking forward to working with her.
"Nic Faltum, she's an experienced player, captains Victoria. She was in the Aussie A squad in India and did a great job as skipper over there in the T20s. I'm really excited to work with her again. And Sophie Reid, I haven't had much to do with Soph, but she's really excited to be at the Renegades, and I can see her being really versatile whether it's at the top of the order or in the middle order, and she's our backup keeper if something happens to Nic."