Reigning champions Brisbane Heat eyeing title defence after ending Sixers' dominance

WOMEN'S BIG BASH LEAGUE PREVIEW - BRISBANE HEAT: Brisbane have cut two South Africans and added two New Zealanders to an already strong all-round squad

Coach: Ashley Noffke

Captain: Kirby Short

Overseas players: Maddy Green, Amelia Kerr (both New Zealand)

Australia national team players: Beth Mooney, Jess Jonassen, Delissa Kimmince

Last season: Champions (third in group stage)

How did they do last season? They won their first ever title last year after a miracle final-ball finish in the semi-final, when Haidee Birkett caught Sydney Thunder’s Nicola Carey right on the boundary.

They restricted the Sydney Sixers, with the best batting line-up and star player Ellyse Perry, to a middling score and hit the winning runs with four balls remaining.

Key players

Beth Mooney: Won consecutive MVP titles for the Heat and is reigning ICC World T20 player of the year. She made the third-most runs (486 at 37.38) and anchored the side to victory in last year’s final with a battling 65 which saw her named player of the match.

Sammy-Jo Johnson: Allrounder Johnson took the joint-second most wickets last year with 20 at 17.95, as well as contributing 260 runs to the cause. 

Delissa Kimmince: Took 22 wickets, no-one took more in the tournament last season. Has also represented Brisbane at Australian rules in the Queensland WAFL and has the athleticism to hit the same wickets tally again this season. A key member of Australia's white-ball outfit in their Women's Ashes victory.

Grace Harris: Plays alongside sister Laura in Brisbane. Hit the first-ever WBBL century, and last season finished in the top 10 for both wickets taken (16 at 16.93) and runs scored (374), with a top score of 101 not out.

^{Amelia Kerr struck an ODI double century against Ireland}

Strengths

Six of the top 15 wicket-takers came out of Brisbane in last year's tournament, with allrounders Johnson, Kimmince and Jessica Jonassen offering substantial output with both the ball and bat. Kirby Short is the only player older than 30 in a youthful squad.

Weaknesses

Not many. They only won three from seven at home. However, they were only beaten comfortably twice last season; on one of those occasions - against Hobart Hurricanes, none of their top five made a score; on the other, they struggled to take early wickets – neither of those happen very often to this team.

England involvement

None.

Squad: Lilly Mills, Charli Knott, Haidee Birkett, Laura Harris, Georgia Prestwidge, Mikayla Hinkley, Courtney Sippel, Amelia Kerr, Maddy Green, Sammy-Jo Johnson, Kirby Short, Grace Harris, Jess Jonassen, Delissa Kimmince, Beth Mooney

TEAM-BY-TEAM PREVIEWS

Adelaide Strikers

Brisbane Heat

Hobart Hurricanes

Melbourne Renegades

Melbourne Stars

Perth Scorchers

Sydney Sixers

Sydney Thunder