The Perth Scorchers (WBBL) are an Australian women's

Twenty20 cricket Twenty20 (abbreviated T20) is a shortened format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the county cricket, inter-county competition. In a Twenty20 game, the two t ...

team based in East Perth,

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

. They compete in the Women's Big Bash League, and won their first championship in WBBL07.

History

Formation

One of eight founding WBBL teams, the Perth Scorchers are aligned with the men's team of the same name. On 9 May 2015, the WACA announced Mark Atkinson as the Scorchers' inaugural coach. At the official WBBL launch on 10 July, Jess Cameron was unveiled as the team's first-ever player signing.

Nicole Bolton Nicole Elizabeth Bolton is an Australian former cricketer who played as a left-handed batter and right-arm off break bowler for Australia and a number of domestic teams in Australia, New Zealand and England. Early life and education Bolton wa ...

was appointed as Perth's inaugural

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

. The Scorchers faced almost immediate turmoil, however, with Cameron taking an indefinite break from cricket in October (she would return to the league the following season, albeit with the Melbourne Stars). Then, days before the beginning of WBBL, 01, Atkinson was replaced in the head coaching role by Lisa Keightley. Despite these unexpected obstacles, the team rallied in their first match on 11 December at Aquinas College to defeat the Brisbane Heat by two runs.

Rivalries

Sydney Thunder

The Scorchers and

Sydney Thunder The Sydney Thunder is an Australian franchise professional cricket team, competing in Australia's domestic Twenty20 cricket competition, the Big Bash League. Along with the Sydney Sixers, the Thunder is the successor to the Speed Blitz Blues, ...

have met in two semi-finals: * 21 January 2016, Adelaide Oval: Defending a total of 6/118, the Thunder restricted the Scorchers to 9/110 and claimed victory by eight runs. The Thunder would go on to win the inaugural WBBL championship. * 1 February 2018,

Perth Stadium Perth Stadium, commercially known as Optus Stadium due to sponsorship reasons, is a multi-purpose stadium in the Burswood, Western Australia, Burswood suburb of Perth, Western Australia. It was completed during late 2017 and officially opened ...

: In the first innings, the Scorchers posted a total of 2/148. The Thunder were reeling by the 11th over of the run chase, having lost five wickets for just 46 runs. Fran Wilson piled on 46 runs from 28 balls late in the match but Perth, led by Emma King's 3/17, easily defended the target to win by 27 runs. A scheduling quirk, the two teams did not meet in the Thunder's home state of

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

until WBBL, 06 when the entire tournament was played in Sydney due to the COVID-19 pandemic. From 2017 to 2018, five of their regular season encounters were played at Lilac Hill Park and characterised by close finishes, including: * 7 January 2018: The Scorchers were well poised to chase down their target of 146 until a catch on the boundary by Thunder fielder Lisa Griffith dismissed

for 71 in the 18th over. On the last ball of the match, Scorchers batter Mathilda Carmichael was

run out Run out is a method of dismissal in cricket, in which the fielding team put down the wicket of a batter who is outside their ground, usually because they are trying to score a run. Run out is governed by Law 38 of the laws of cricket. If ...

by a metre while attempting a game-tying run, therefore securing victory for the Thunder by the narrowest of margins. * 29 December 2018: The Thunder were catapulted to a score of 5/179 by a late 49-run partnership between Harmanpreet Kaur and Stafanie Taylor (which included 21 runs off the 18th over against the bowling of Taneale Peschel, who had taken 1/12 in her first three overs). Eight overs into the second innings, captain Meg Lanning had scored 71 of the Scorchers' 83 runs. Although Lanning was run out for 76 in the tenth over,

Elyse Villani Elyse Jayne Villani (born 6 October 1989) is an Australian cricketer who played for the Australia national women's team from 2009 to 2019. She has also played domestic cricket for various teams in both the Women's National Cricket League (WNC ...

went on to score 66 not out, guiding the Scorchers to a six-wicket victory with one ball remaining. In doing so, the Scorchers set a new WBBL record for highest successful run chase.

Sydney Sixers

The

Sydney Sixers The Sydney Sixers is an Australian professional franchise men's cricket team, competing in Australia's domestic Twenty20 cricket competition, the Big Bash League (BBL). Along with the Sydney Thunder, the Sixers are the successors of the Spee ...

have met, and defeated, the Scorchers in two championship deciders: * 28 January 2017,

WACA Ground The WACA Ground () is a sports stadium in Perth, Western Australia. The stadium's name derives from the initials of its owners and operators, the Western Australian Cricket Association (WACA). The WACA has been referred to as Western Australia' ...

: With Sydney captain

Ellyse Perry Ellyse Perry (born 3 November 1990) is an Australian cricketer and former soccer, soccer player. Having debuted for both the Australia women's national cricket team, national cricket and Australia women's national soccer team, national soccer t ...

sidelined due to a hamstring injury, the Sixers posted a modest total of 5/124 in the first innings. An unbeaten knock of 35 from 30 balls by Katherine Brunt was not enough to secure victory for the Scorchers, as the Sixers "fielded like demons and bowled dry" in a "veritable classic" to win by a narrow seven-run margin and claim their maiden title. Sarah Aley earned Player of the Final honours for her bowling figures of 4/23 off four overs. * 4 February 2018, Adelaide Oval: Electing to bat first, the Scorchers were steamrolled for 99 all out. The Sixers experienced little difficulty in the run chase, mowing down the required target with nine wickets in hand and 30 balls remaining to claim a second consecutive WBBL title. Sarah Coyte earned Player of the Final honours for her bowling figures of 3/17 off four overs.

Brisbane Heat

Noteworthy matches between the Scorchers and the Brisbane Heat include: * 11 December 2015, Aquinas College: The Scorchers, in their first-ever game, successfully defended a total of just 9/106 by bowling out the Heat for 104. Katherine Brunt finished with bowling figures of 4/17 and was also credited for the run out of Holly Ferling on the last ball of the match, securing a two-run victory for the Scorchers. * 24 January 2017, WACA Ground: In the WBBL, 02 semi-finals, Perth chased down the target of 125 with 26 balls remaining. In what was a thumping defeat, the only wicket Brisbane managed to take was that of Elyse Villani, for 52, via run out. * 26 December 2018, Perth Stadium: Played as a double-header after a men's match in front of a reported crowd of 14,983 spectators (setting a new attendance record for a WBBL game in

), the Scorchers' total of 5/136 was chased down by the Heat with five wickets in hand and four balls remaining.

Adelaide Strikers

In the league's early years, the Scorchers and

Adelaide Strikers The Adelaide Strikers are an Australian professional Twenty20 franchise cricket team based in Adelaide, South Australia that compete in the Big Bash League (BBL).Cricket Australia (n.d), Teams and Players, Cricket Australia, accessed 1 Decemb ...

experienced several instances of senior members switching allegiances: *Inaugural Strikers captain Lauren Ebsary joined the Scorchers after just one season. *Former Scorchers captain Suzie Bates moved to the Strikers ahead of WBBL, 03 and became the first player to lead two WBBL clubs. *After scoring the most runs for Perth throughout WBBL, 01, Charlotte Edwards transferred to Adelaide in her final year of cricket. The following season, Edwards assumed an assistant coaching role for the Strikers. *Ahead of WBBL, 06, former Adelaide

all-rounder An all-rounder is a cricketer who regularly performs well at both batting and bowling. Although all bowlers must bat and quite a handful of batsmen do bowl occasionally, most players are skilled in only one of the two disciplines and are cons ...

Shelley Nitschke was appointed to the position of head coach for the Scorchers. Noteworthy matches between the two teams include: * 13 January 2018, Traeger Park: In a match reduced to 16 overs per side due to a rain delay, the Scorchers could only muster a first innings score of 9/87. In the run chase, Suzie Bates played a lone hand of 49 not out to help the Strikers win by six wickets with one ball to spare. * 9 November 2019, Karen Rolton Oval: An innings of 80 runs from 58 deliveries by Amy Jones helped Perth post a total of 3/173. Despite a slow start to the run chase, Adelaide finished strongly with Bridget Patterson scoring 60 off 32 balls. However, Heather Graham conceded just a single off the final ball to give the Scorchers a two-run win. * 7 December 2019,

Allan Border Field Allan Border Field is a cricket ground in the Brisbane suburb of Albion in Queensland. The Australian Cricket Academy has been based at the oval since 2004, using it as a base for the development of elite cricketers throughout Australia. It ...

: In the WBBL, 05 semi-finals, the Strikers comfortably reached the required total of 127 with eight wickets in hand and eleven balls remaining to eliminate the Scorchers from the tournament.

Captaincy records

There have been six captains in the Scorchers' history, including matches featuring an acting captain. Source:

Season summaries

Home grounds

Current squad

The squad of the Perth Scorchers for the 2025–26 Women's Big Bash League season as of 14 May 2025. *Players with international caps are listed in bold.

Players

Australian representatives

The following is a list of cricketers who have played for the Scorchers after making their debut in the national women's team (the period they spent as both a Scorchers squad member and an Australian-capped player is in brackets):

Overseas marquees

The following is a list of cricketers who have played for the Scorchers as overseas marquees:

Associate rookies

Statistics and awards

Team stats

*Champions: 1 – WBBL07 *Runners-up: 2 – WBBL02, WBBL03 * Minor premiers: 1 – WBBL, 07 * Win–loss record: * Highest score in an innings: 2/194 (20 overs) vs Melbourne Renegades, 3 November 2021 * Highest successful chase: 4/180 (19.5 overs) vs

, 29 December 2018 * Lowest successful defence: 9/106 (20 overs) vs Brisbane Heat, 11 December 2015 * Largest victory: ** Batting first: 104 runs vs Melbourne Renegades, 12 November 2022 ** Batting second: 55 balls remaining vs Melbourne Stars, 10 November 2021 * Longest winning streak: 7 matches (17 November 2021 – 20 October 2022) * Longest losing streak: 4 matches Source:

Individual stats

* Most runs: Beth Mooney – 2,475 * Highest score in an innings: Sophie Devine – 106 (62) vs Brisbane Heat, 9 November 2023 * Highest partnership: Sophie Devine and Beth Mooney – 173 vs Sydney Thunder, 24 October 2021 * Most wickets: Heather Graham – 102 * Best bowling figures in an innings: Alana King – 5/16 (4 overs) vs Brisbane Heat, 5 November 2024 *

Hat-tricks A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three Wick ...

taken:

vs Hobart Hurricanes, 19 December 2015 * Most catches (fielder): Chloe Piparo – 36 * Most dismissals (wicket-keeper): Beth Mooney – 40 (24 catches, 16 stumpings) Source:

Individual awards

* Player of the Match: ** Sophie Devine – 12 ** Beth Mooney and

– 10 ** Heather Graham – 6 ** Nicole Bolton and Meg Lanning – 5 ** Katherine Sciver-Brunt, Charlotte Edwards, Amy Jones, Alana King – 4 ** Chloe Ainsworth and Nat Sciver-Brunt – 3 ** Marizanne Kapp and Emma King – 2 **

Amy Edgar Amy Louise Edgar (born 27 December 1997) is an Australian cricketer who plays as a right-handed batter and right-arm off break bowler for Western Australia in the Women's National Cricket League (WNCL) and Perth Scorchers in the Women's Big ...

, Maddy Green, and Katie-Jane Hartshorn – 1 *WBBL Player of the Final: ** Marizanne Kapp – WBBL07 * WBBL Player of the Tournament: ** Sophie Devine – WBBL06 * WBBL Team of the Tournament: ** Beth Mooney (5) – WBBL06, WBBL07, WBBL08, WBBL09, WBBL10 ** Sophie Devine (3) – WBBL, 06, WBBL, 07, WBBL, 09 ** Katherine Brunt (2) – WBBL02, WBBL03 ** Meg Lanning (2) – WBBL04, WBBL05 ** Chloe Ainsworth (2) – WBBL, 09, WBBL, 10 ** Charlotte Edwards – WBBL01 ** Nicole Bolton – WBBL, 03 ** Elyse Villani – WBBL, 03 ** Heather Graham – WBBL, 04 ** Taneale Peschel – WBBL, 06 ** Amy Edgar – WBBL, 09 ** Alana King – WBBL, 10 * WBBL Young Gun Award: ** Chloe Ainsworth – WBBL, 10

References

Notes

External links

* {{Perth Sports Teams Women's Big Bash League teams Cricket teams in Western Australia Cricket clubs established in 2015 2015 establishments in Australia Sports clubs and teams in Perth, Western Australia