The Women’s Big Bash League returns for its 12th edition, WBBL|12, starting Thursday, 29 October 2026 and running through to the Final on Saturday, 5 December 2026 (43 matches across 38 days).
The season opens with a doubleheader at Junction Oval, Melbourne: Melbourne Renegades Women vs Sydney Thunder Women, followed by Melbourne Stars Women vs defending champions Hobart Hurricanes Women.
Complete List of WBBL 2025 Teams
The WBBL 2026 teams feature eight competitive franchises across Australia, each aiming for the championship. Here’s a complete list of the participating teams:
- Sydney Sixers Women
- Sydney Thunder Women
- Brisbane Heat Women
- Adelaide Strikers Women
- Melbourne Stars Women
- Melbourne Renegades Women
- Perth Scorchers Women
- Hobart Hurricanes Women
These teams bring a mix of experienced internationals, promising young players, and strategic line-ups, making WBBL 2025 one of the most balanced and exciting seasons in the league’s history.
WBBL 2026 Teams: Captains & Key Players
The WBBL 2026 teams feature a mix of experienced leaders, international stars, and emerging talent across all franchises. Here’s a quick look at each team’s captain and key players for the upcoming season.
1. Brisbane Heat Women’s Squad 2026
- Captain: Jess Jonassen (returning, pending confirmation)
- Batsmen: Jemimah Rodrigues (Ind), Danni Wyatt-Hodge (Eng), Annie O’Neil (Aus), Laura Harris (Aus), Lucinda Bourke (Aus), Nadine de Klerk (SA), Sianna Ginger (Aus), Mikayla Hinkley (Aus), Courtney Grace Sippel (Aus)
- All-rounders: Sarah Glenn (Eng), Ellie Johnston (Aus), Jess Jonassen (Aus), Shikha Pandey (Ind), Zoe Cooke (Aus), Georgia Voll (Aus), Chinelle Henry (WI)
- Bowlers: Grace Harris (Aus), Charli Knott (Aus), Lucy Hamilton (Aus), Bonnie Berry (Aus), Grace Parsons (Aus), Lily Bassingthwaighte (Aus), Nicola Hancock (Aus), Courtney Sippel (Aus), Amelia Kerr (NZ), Jess Kerr (NZ), Pooja Vastrakar (Ind)
- Wicketkeepers: Mignon du Preez (SA), Bess Heath (Eng), Lauren Winfield-Hill (Eng), Mikayla L Wrigley (Aus), Georgia Redmayne (Aus), Mikayla Wrigley (Aus)
2. Melbourne Renegades Women’s Squad 2026
- Captain: Sophie Molineux (returning, pending confirmation)
- Batsmen: Evelyn Jones (Eng), Courtney Webb (Aus), Naomi Stalenberg (Aus), Charis Bekker (Aus), Tayla Vlaeminck (Aus), Tess Flintoff (Aus), Davina Perrin (Eng), Rhiann O’Donnell (Aus), Jess Duffin (Aus)
- All-rounders: Chamari Athapaththu (SL), Hayley Matthews (WI), Harmanpreet Kaur (Ind), Deandra Dottin (WI), Grace Scrivens (Eng), Ella Hayward (Aus), Milly Illingworth (Aus), Paris Bowdler (Aus), Alice Capsey (Eng), Emma de Broughe (Aus)
- Bowlers: Tara Norris (Eng), Linsey Smith (Eng), Sophie Molineux (Aus), Georgia Prestwidge (Aus), Georgia Wareham (Aus), Sara Kennedy (Aus), Sarah Coyte (Aus), Carly Leeson (Aus), Shabnim Ismail (SA), Issy Wong (Eng), Ellie Falconer (Aus)
- Wicketkeepers: Tammy Beaumont (Eng), Josephine Dooley (Aus), Nicole Faltum (Aus), Erica Kershaw (Aus)
3. Melbourne Stars Women’s Squad 2026
- Captain: Annabel Sutherland (returning, pending confirmation)
- Batsmen: Jemimah Rodrigues (Ind), Maia Bouchier (Eng), Olivia Henry (Aus), Rhys McKenna (Aus), Annabel Sutherland (Aus), Kim Garth (Aus), Sasha Moloney (Aus), Tess Flintoff (Aus), Lucy Cripps (Aus)
- All-rounders: Deepti Sharma (Ind), Marizanne Kapp (SA), Sophia Dunkley Brown (Eng), Ella Hayward (Aus), Milly Illingworth (Aus), Meg Lanning (Aus), Sophie Day (Aus), Alice Capsey (Eng)
- Bowlers: Danielle Gibson (Eng), Georgia Prestwidge (Aus), Hasrat Gill (Aus), Maisy Gibson (Aus), Una Raymond-Hoey (Ire), Indigo Noble (Aus)
- Wicketkeepers: Amy Ellen Jones (Eng), Bess Heath (Eng), Lauren Winfield-Hill (Eng), Nicole Faltum (Aus), Ines McKeon (Aus), Sophie Reid (Aus), Yastika Bhatia (Ind)
4. Sydney Sixers Women’s Squad 2026
- Captain: Ashleigh Gardner (returning, pending confirmation)
- Batsmen: Hollie Armitage (Eng), Elsa Hunter (Mal), Claire Moore (Aus), Hannah Trethewy (Aus)
- All-rounders: Mady Villiers (Eng), Sophia Dunkley Brown (Eng), Suzie Bates (NZ), Ashleigh Gardner (Aus), Ellyse Perry (Aus), Frankie Nicklin (Aus), Kate Peterson (Aus), Chloe Tryon (SA), Erin Burns (Aus), Lauren Kua (Aus), Nicole Bolton (Aus)
- Bowlers: Sophie Ecclestone (Eng), Linsey Smith (Eng), Stella Campbell (Aus), Mathilda Carmichael (Aus), Maitlan Brown (Aus), Caoimhe Bray (Aus), Courtney Sippel (Aus), Lauren Cheatle (Aus), Amelia Kerr (NZ), Jess Kerr (NZ), Angelina Genford (Aus), Jade Allen (Aus)
- Wicketkeepers: Alyssa Healy (Aus), Kate Pelle (Aus), Sarah Bryce (Sco), Emma Manix-Geeves (Aus)
5. Sydney Thunder Women’s Squad 2026
- Captain: Phoebe Litchfield (returning, pending confirmation)
- Batsmen: Georgia Adams (Eng), Heather Knight (Eng), Laura Harris (Aus), Anika Learoyd (Aus), Claire Moore (Aus), Tahlia Wilson (Aus), Hannah Darlington (Aus), Taneale Peschel (Aus), Lucy Finn (Aus), Corinne Hall (Aus), Olivia Porter (Aus)
- All-rounders: Chamari Athapaththu (SL), Marizanne Kapp (SA), Georgia Voll (Aus), Saskia Horley (Aus), Ella Briscoe (Aus), Sammy-Jo Johnson (Aus), Paris Bowdler (Aus), Chloe Tryon (SA), Emily Arlott (Eng), Rachael Haynes (Aus), Jessica Davidson (Aus)
- Bowlers: Lauren Bell (Eng), Lauren Smith (Aus), Hasrat Gill (Aus), Ebony Hoskin (Aus), Phoebe Litchfield (Aus), Samantha Bates (Aus), Shabnim Ismail (SA), Sienne Eve (Aus), Lea Tahuhu (NZ), Belinda Vakarewa (Aus)
- Wicketkeepers: Amy Ellen Jones (Eng), Tammy Beaumont (Eng)
6. Hobart Hurricanes Women’s Squad 2026
- Captain: Elyse Villani (returning, pending confirmation)
- Batsmen: Kathryn Bryce (Sco), Lizelle Lee (SA), Danni Wyatt-Hodge (Eng), Elyse Villani (Aus), Rachel Trenaman (Aus), Tabatha Saville (Aus), Naomi Stalenberg (Aus)
- All-rounders: Bryony Smith (Eng), Natalie Sciver-Brunt (Eng), Suzie Bates (NZ), Nicola Carey (Aus), Ruth Johnston (Sam), Rosemary Mair (NZ), Zoe Cooke (Aus), Chloe Tryon (SA), Hayley Jensen (NZ)
- Bowlers: Linsey Smith (Eng), Heather Graham (Aus), Amy Smith (Aus), Callie Wilson (Aus), Lauren Smith (Aus), Molly Strano (Aus), Maisy Gibson (Aus), Isabella Malgioglio (Aus), Shabnim Ismail (SA), Hayley Silver-Holmes (Aus), Julia Cavanough (Aus)
- Wicketkeepers: Mignon du Preez (SA), Emma Manix-Geeves (Aus)
7. Perth Scorchers Women’s Squad 2026
- Captain: Sophie Devine (returning, pending confirmation)
- Batsmen: Paige Scholfield (Eng), Katie Mack (Aus), Charis Bekker (Aus), Brooke Halliday (NZ), Chloe Piparo (Aus), Mikayla Hinkley (Aus), Amy Edgar (Aus), Taneale Peschel (Aus), Amy Louise Edgar (Aus)
- All-rounders: Natalie Sciver-Brunt (Eng), Marizanne Kapp (SA), Sophie Devine (NZ), Chloe Ainsworth (Aus), Maddy Green (NZ), Georgia Wyllie (Aus)
- Bowlers: Ruby Strange (Aus), Dayalan Hemalatha (Ind), Carly Leeson (Aus), Maddy Darke (Aus), Alana King (Aus), Ebony Hoskin (Aus), Lilly Mills (Aus), Ni Made Putri Suwandewi (Indo), Piepa Cleary (Aus), Stella Campbell (Aus), Mathilda Carmichael (Aus), Freya Kemp (Eng), Shay Manolini (Aus), Holly Ferling (Aus), Lisa Griffith (Aus)
- Wicketkeepers: Amy Ellen Jones (Eng), Lauren Winfield-Hill (Eng), Beth Mooney (Aus)
8. Adelaide Strikers Women’s Squad 2026
- Captain: Tahlia McGrath (returning, pending confirmation)
- Batsmen: Georgia Adams (Eng), Smriti Mandhana (Ind), Annie O’Neil (Aus), Katie Mack (Aus), Bridget Patterson (Aus), Tabatha Saville (Aus), Laura Wolvaardt (SA)
- All-rounders: Tahlia McGrath (Aus), Eleanor Larosa (Aus), Ella Wilson (Aus), Ellie Johnston (Aus), Anesu Mushangwe (Zim), Deandra Dottin (WI), Orla Prendergast (Ire)
- Bowlers: Danielle Gibson (Eng), Sophie Ecclestone (Eng), Amanda-Jade Wellington (Aus), Madeline Penna (Aus), Darcie Brown (Aus), Jemma Barsby (Aus), Megan Schutt (Aus), Meagan Dixon (Aus)
- Wicketkeepers: Tammy Beaumont (Eng), Tegan McPharlin (Aus)
Breakout Players to Watch — WBBL 2026
The WBBL 2026 season could see several emerging players make a strong impact. Here are the breakout talents to watch.
1. Georgia Voll (Sydney Thunder)
A powerful top-order hitter with a growing reputation for finding boundaries early, Voll has been knocking on the door of a bigger role for a couple of seasons. With more overs likely up top for Thunder, this looks like the year she turns promise into a genuine breakout campaign.
2. Anesu Mushangwe (Adelaide Strikers)
The Zimbabwean all-rounder offers something different — genuine pace-bowling all-round skills that are rare in the women’s game. If Strikers lean on her with both bat and ball, she has the profile to become one of the league’s most talked-about overseas imports.
3. Milly Illingworth (Melbourne Stars / Renegades pool)
A left-arm spinning all-rounder who’s featured across multiple Victorian squads this pre-season, Illingworth’s versatility makes her a genuine floater option — the kind of player who can go from fringe selection to a match-winner within a single tournament.
4. Isabella Malgioglio (Hobart Hurricanes)
Part of the Hurricanes’ title-winning squad, Malgioglio is exactly the type of young domestic bowler that a champion side likes to fast-track. Expect an expanded role as Hobart looks to defend its maiden crown.
5. Ruby Strange (Perth Scorchers)
A raw-pace bowling option in a Scorchers attack that’s traditionally leaned on experience, Strange has the tools to force her way into a more regular XI spot — and every WBBL season tends to produce one quick who announces themselves out of nowhere.
Final Words
WBBL 2026-27 (WBBL|12) promises a mix of title defence from Hobart Hurricanes, continuity from long-serving captains, and fresh overseas alignments across the competition.
As with every pre-season, expect squads to be finalised only once the overseas player draft, retentions, and replacement signings are locked in, so treat this list as a strong working draft rather than the final word.